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The timing was perfect for Gilchrist

Adam has always set high standards for himself, and must have wanted to quit when he was on a high, writes Steve Waugh

Adam Gilchrist’s retirement was as much of a surprise for me as it was for his many admirers across the world. However, the timing was perfect for a keeper-batsman who continuously raised standards not only for others around the world, but also for himself.

Knowing Adam, the first thoughts of retiring must have hit him when he missed a couple of chances in this series that he would have normally taken with his eyes closed. Adam has always set high standards for himself, and must have wanted to quit when he was on a high, and what he certainly did not want to do was peter out towards the end of his career.

I remember the one-dayer when I first made Adam open. We were not having much joy in the C&U Series of 1998, and I was looking for a spark of inspiration in the finals against South Africa.

On a hunch, I sent him to open. Success was almost immediate because he scored a century in the second final itself. That was the moment when the asking rate went up for wicketkeepers around the world. No longer was it enough for them to just pass muster when it came to batting — they now had to be good enough to be counted as batsmen.

Kumar Sangakkara, Mark Boucher, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Brendon McCullum are all the result of the revolution that Adam brought about to wicket-keeping, and while most have impressed in patches, none has replicated Adam’s consistency in scoring, and more importantly, in relentless attack.

An impact player

One of the best examples of an impact player, it was the aggression which Adam brought to batting at number seven that gave Australia a certain x-factor. When most teams thought they had knocked us over at five-down, Adam would almost invariably turn things around, and in the matter of a few overs, the pressure was on the opposition. It is no coincidence that Adam was part of the Australian cricket team through both the 16-Test winning streaks. He was the chief architect in at least three of the wins we registered in the first streak, and across his career, he must have won at least 10 Tests off his bat. And I have not even mentioned his wicket-keeping yet.

Among the greatest

Proof of Adam’s proficiency behind the stumps is that the team never missed a keeper of Ian Healy’s calibre. Healy was so faultless in his keeping to Shane Warne, but Adam was very good as well. And if you added his batting to the equation, he joined the ranks of the game’s greatest all-rounders, in my book second only to Sir Garfield Sobers.

The departure of Warne, Glenn McGrath and now Adam will make it harder for Australia to win consistently — something that has been visible in the last three Tests of this series. They still have great depth with the likes of Ricky Ponting, Matthew Hayden, Michael Hussey, Brett Lee and Andrew Symonds. However, the aura that this team possessed seems to have diminished slightly, and oppositions will begin to fancy their chances. The Australian team is still far from beatable, but the wins will be harder to come by. Historically, each team has a cycle, and while Australia will be on top for some more time, their generation next has a lot to prove.

Costly lapse in planning

India have done themselves proud, especially after Sydney, though the BCCI has a lot to answer for as far as the itinerary was concerned. The Indians had no preparation coming into the Boxing Day Test, and in the final analysis, that might have cost them the series. They were on top for most of the Sydney Test, won at Perth, and dominated proceedings at Adelaide as well.

Indian cricket seems to be entering an exciting phase. The team has great potential and balance, and they must aspire to be the best Test team in the world. It’s time for Indian cricket to let go of some of the seniors so that a young, buoyant team can carry forward the good work.

The break from international cricket seems to have done Virender Sehwag a great deal of good, the young pacers seem to enjoy bowling overseas, and the youngsters have shown potential.

The only disappointment was the way Harbhajan Singh bowled in this Test. It was a negative line, and not outside the off-stump, where he is normally so effective. Perhaps it is time for Harbhajan to take a look at himself and organise himself better. He is still young and talented, but needs to refocus on his game to recapture his earlier form.

This Test series has set things up wonderfully for the India-Australia series in India later this year.

This rivalry has been a quality one right through the decade, and for me at least now ranks alongside the Ashes as the best cricketing rivalry in the world.

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