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Waugh replaces Lloyd as greatest captain

July 20, 2003 14:24 IST

Steve Waugh replaced West Indian great Clive Lloyd as cricket's most successful ever captain when he led Australia to victory over Bangladesh on Sunday.

Waugh chalked up his 37th win as skipper, surpassing the previous world record of 36 set by Lloyd in the 1980s, with a strike rate unmatched in cricket's long history.

"It was a bit of a slow start and a real learning process in the first 12 months, but I feel as if I've improved along the way and done a pretty good job," Waugh told a news conference on Sunday.

"I've been fortunate enough to have some great players in my side, guys who can really make the game, so it's been a real team effort."

Waugh's 37 wins came from just 50 matches in charge while Lloyd needed 74 matches for his 36 wins. Australia's Allan Border, third on the all-time list with 32 wins, captained in 93 matches, albeit mostly at a time when his teams were struggling.

Waugh's winning strike rate of 74 per cent is easily the highest by any captain who has been in charge for at least 20 Tests with the late Don Bradman's success rate of 62.50 the second best. Lloyd and Border are both under 50 per cent.

Waugh only took over the captaincy in 1999 when Mark Taylor stood down but has quickly established himself as a strong leader and his team is already being compared to Bradman's 1948 Invincibles, arguably the greatest side of all time.

There are no obvious weaknesses in Waugh's team and the side includes a handful of players who will be remembered among the greats of the game including Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Adam Gilchrist and, of course, Waugh himself.

Waugh attributes his success to the team's strategy of scoring their runs quickly because it allows them to take the weather out of the equation then bowl and field aggressively knowing they have enough time to get the wickets.

"It's a positive way that we play the game and we like to try and win in quick time," Waugh said.

"A lot of games are finishing early but I think the quality of cricket we put out in that period of time is much better than five dull or boring days.

"I think people enjoy watching aggressive cricket, guys playing shots and attacking fields and bowlers going up to the batsman, I think that's the way cricket should be played and if all the countries can take a leaf out of that book then it's good for world cricket."


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