Steve Waugh: Tugga

Stephen Rodger Waugh was the captain of the Australian Test cricket team from 1999 to 2004. He is the most experienced Test cricketer in history, making 168 appearances. He is known amongst friends as "Tugga", and amongst the public "Iceman" for his ability to remain calm and cool in high-pressure situations throughout his career.

Waugh made his first class debut for New South Wales in the 1984-85 Sheffield Shield season, batting at number nine and bowling heavily with his medium pacers. He played an important part in the helping to secure the Shield title, making 71 of 92 runs while he was batting with the tail in the final, keeping his team in sight of victory. He supplemented his development by playing for Somerset County Cricket Club in 1987 and 1988. He made his Test debut aged 20 against India in the 1985-86 season as a batting all rounder, but failed to make a substantial score in his first two Tests. He made 71, 79* and 73 in the 1986-87 Australian home series against England, but in his early career was inconsistent in Tests.


Steve Waugh photo montage

The 1987 Cricket World Cup

Early in his career, Waugh was a natural and uninhibited stroke player with expansive drives off the back foot. He scored relatively quickly, but inconsistently. He was at his best in this phase of his career in ODIs, when he often accelerated the innings in the later overs of the innings. He was also a valuable bowler, who used a carefully disguised slower ball bowled from the back of his hand. He regularly bowled in the death overs, where his change of pace often stymied opposition finishing bursts. The 1987 Cricket World Cup on the Indian subcontinent was considered a turning point of Waugh’s career, in which Australia entered as 18-1 outsiders. In the first match, Australia had made 6/270 against India, who were 2/207 in reply with 13 overs remaining. Waugh’s tight finishing spell pegged India, requiring them to score six runs from the final over. They could only manage four runs, and Waugh dismissed Maninder Singh from the second last ball to secure a one run victory. In the following match against New Zealand cricket team, Waugh bowled the last over with seven runs required by New Zealand for victory. They could only manage three runs as Waugh took three wickets in the over to seal a three run win. Australia qualified for the semi finals, where they met co-host Pakistan. Waugh hammered 16 runs from the final over in Australia’s innings, a close contest that Australia went on to win by 18 runs. Waugh was again a key player as Australia defended a target of 254 in the final against England in Calcutta. He bowled the 47th and 49th overs as England made a late surge towards victory, removing Allan Lamb and Phil de Freitas to seal a seven run win and secure the World Cup.

The 1989 Ashes

In the 1988-89 Australian season, Waugh mixed some failures with two entertaining innings of 90 and 91 against the West Indies. It was not until the 1989 Ashes tour of England that Waugh’s Test batting came to prominence. In the First Test at Headingley, his 27th Test, he broke through for his maiden Test century with a free flowing unbeaten 177 marked by square driving, in just over five hours of batting. He followed this with an unbeaten 152 in the Second Test at Lords’, adeptly shepherding his tail end partners to help Australia set up a winning 242 run lead in the first innings. Waugh scored 92 in the Fourth Test at Old Trafford and finished the series with 506 runs at 126.5.

In 1990, he and twin brother Mark scored an unbeaten partnership of 464 in 407 minutes in a Shield match against Western Australia at the WACA Ground, setting a world record. The teams were at full strength and the record was set against an attack including Test bowlers Terry Alderman, Bruce Reid and Chris Matthews.

Dropped

He suffered a form slump during the 1990-91 Ashes series in Australia, and was dropped for the Fourth Test at the Adelaide Oval. His twin brother Mark, who scored a century on debut to hold his place, replaced him. When Waugh was recalled in the Third Test in Trinidad on the early 1991 tour of the Caribbean, the brothers became the first twins to play in a Test together. Waugh was dropped from the Australian team during the 1991-92 home series against India and then missed the tour of Sri Lanka in mid 1992.

Waugh returned to the team against the West Indies in 1992-93. With Geoff Marsh dropped, and Tom Moody unable to establish himself as Marsh’s replacement in the opening role, David Boon became a makeshift opener. This opened a middle order berth, and Waugh returned at No. 3 for the 1992-93 home Test series against the West Indies.

Batting Style

His trademark shot against spin bowling is the "slog sweep" which he gradually developed later in his career; theoretically technically unsound, it has proven highly effective against the spinners and even against faster bowlers at times. What was also noticeable about Waugh (particularly in the test arena) on his return to the side was his reluctance (and eventual refusal) to play the 'risky' hook shot, rather simply to either play defensively on the back foot, sway or duck out of the way. With this shot removed from Waugh's repertoire his batting developed a safer more reliable look and his test match batting average steadily rose to around 50 for the remainder of his test career.

Waugh's ability to continue to play despite a back injury that largely prevented him bowling further enhanced his reputation. Waugh, along with the bowling of Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath, provided perhaps the major foundation upon which the Australian team rose to become what was widely regarded as the best team in the world by the mid-1990s. He contributed to many one-day victories but, batting in the middle order, his first one-day hundred did not come until his 187th match, for Australia against Sri Lanka at Melbourne in 1995-96.






Steve Waugh’s classic century in the fifth test of the 2002-03 ashes


Captaincy

Waugh took over the captaincy of the one-day side in 1997-98, after captain Mark Taylor and vice-captain Ian Healy; the two oldest players in the team were dropped following Australia's failure to qualify for the Australian tri-nations tournament in the 1996-97 season. Planning began for a more modern team for the 1999 Cricket World Cup, with new wicket keeper Adam Gilchrist chosen primarily on his batting skill in response to the use of Romesh Kaluwitharana by the successful 1996 Sri Lankan team. The new team made a difficult start, losing all four of its preliminary matches against South Africa as Michael di Venuto, Tom Moody and Stuart Law were all tried as Mark Waugh's opening partner. However, with Gilchrist's elevation to opener in the finals series, Australia defeated the South Africans 2-1. The following season Waugh was hindered by hamstring injuries for the majority of the ODI tournament, with Shane Warne leading Australia to victory in his absence. He also scored a century in the third Test in Melbourne against England, but was criticized for taking singles off the first ball of the over, and exposing the tail-end batsmen to the strike. Stuart MacGill and Glenn McGrath fell to Darren Gough after one such instance as Australia collapsed in the second innings whilst chasing a small target. This criticism could be considered more than a little unfair, however, given his strong record overall of batting well with lower order batsman such as Merv Hughes, Jason Gillespie, Ian Healy, Shane Warne and even Glenn McGrath precisely by putting his faith in them.

With Taylor retiring from the Test captaincy at the end of the 1998-99 season, Waugh inherited the captaincy, with his first assignment being a tour to the West Indies. Australia were expected to crush their opponents easily, who had been whitewashed 5-0 by South Africa immediately before the series. After easily winning the first Test, Waugh found himself in trouble on his first tour as captain. Embattled West Indies skipper Brian Lara and Jimmy Adams batted for the entire second day of the second Test, to set up a large innings victory, and in the third Test, Lara batted for the entire final day to secure an unlikely one-wicket victory. Under immense pressure and criticism due to the team's inability to defeat a team rated much lower, he was forced to axe Warne from the team for the final Test after his ineffective performances on his comeback from injury, leading to a threat of retirement. Despite, a third consecutive Lara century, the team managed to win the final Test to draw the series and retain the Frank Worrell Trophy. The one-day series brought further trouble, as the Australians stumbled to a 2-2 series draw. The series was notable for two incidents, in Guyana and then Barbados. In the first, Waugh was facing Keith Arthurton with four runs required from the final over. Having failed to score off the first ball, he struck the final ball into the outfield, and attempted three runs to tie the match. A crowd invasion however, resulted in all the stumps being removed, with Waugh a long way short of his ground when the ball arrived. The match was declared a tie. In the Barbados match, during the West Indies run-chase, Barbadian batsman Sherwin Campbell was run out after being involved in a collision with the bowler Brendon Julian, who was attempting to field the ball. This resulted in crowd riots, with Waugh nearly being struck in the head by a glass bottle. The match later continued after Campbell was reinstated, but Waugh criticized the security and questioned the integrity of the match.

Australia then had an unconvincing start to their World Cup campaign. After a scratchy win against Scotland, Australia suffered defeats to New Zealand and Pakistan, meaning that they would have to win their two remaining group matches against Bangladesh and the West Indies, as well as all three Super Six matches to progress to the semi-finals. In all, this meant seven consecutive matches without defeat in order to win the World Cup. After defeating Bangladesh, Waugh and Michael Bevan were criticized for deliberate slow batting, in order to minimize damage to the West Indies and enhance their own chances of progressing to the semi-finals. Waugh testily retorted, "We're not here to make friends, we're here to win the World Cup". Waugh saved his best for two must-win games against South Africa, scoring 120 against South Africa in the last game of the "Super Six" to ensure Australia's progression to the semi-final, and then 56 in the semi, which was tied.

The World Cup victory did not immediately turn around Waugh's difficult start to his Test captaincy. The following tour to Sri Lanka continued the Test difficulties, when Australia were defeated in the first Test in Kandy. The loss was further exacerbated by a horrific collision between Waugh and Jason Gillespie, when Waugh's nose made contact with Gillespie's shin whilst both were running towards one another and both dived for an attempted catch. Gillespie suffered a broken leg, sidelining him for 15 months, and Waugh a broken nose. Although Waugh returned for the following match, doctors stated that he was fortunate to escape death, as his nose could have pierced his brain depending on the angle in which it was pushed upon impact. The following two Tests were both drawn following persistent interruptions due to monsoon weather, with the Australians in an inferior position primarily due to the bowling of Muttiah Muralitharan. Waugh's team went on to win a one-off Test against Zimbabwe, after which John Buchanan replaced Geoff Marsh as the coach.

The 1999-00 Test season, his first as captain in a home series, saw further change as Gilchrist ousted Healy from the wicket keeper's position. With Gilchrist averaging over 50, the team went on to claim a clean-sweep of the Test series, 3-0 against Pakistan and India respectively. His team then proceeded to win the triangular ODI tournament, and went on to sweep New Zealand 3-0 in an away series in early 2000. This was followed by an undefeated home season in 2000-01 when the West Indies were whitewashed 5-0. The Second Test at the WACA Ground brought a twelfth consecutive Test victory, surpassing the record held by the 1980s West Indies team lead by Clive Lloyd. He also lead the Australians undefeated in the triangular ODI tournament against the West Indies and Zimbabwe, despite employing a rotation system which saw the team often under strength with players rested.

The "Final Frontier"

2001 began with an attempt to conquer the "Final Frontier" - to defeat India on the subcontinent, where Australia had not won a series since 1970 under Bill Lawry. The campaign appeared to be on track, with the first Test in Mumbai being won easily by ten wickets, and India looking set for defeat in the second after conceding a lead of 274. Waugh choose to enforce the follow-on, and saw the sequence of 16 consecutive victories end after V. V. S. Laxman and Rahul Dravid batted for the entire fourth day's play and set up a large run chase after a partnership of 376 on a dusty spinning wicket. The Australians were unable to cope with the spin of Harbhajan Singh on the final day, becoming only the third team to lose a Test after enforcing the follow-on. Australia started the final Test well, but collapsed on the second morning after Waugh became only the sixth batsman to be given out handled the ball when he pushed a ball from Harbhajan away from the stumps after being hit on the pads. Harbhajan finished with 15 wickets in the match, which resulted in a two-wicket victory to the Indians, and the "Final Frontier" eluded Waugh.

Waugh's team returned to victory with a 4-1 series result over England during the 2001 Ashes tour, with Waugh being injured for the single loss at Headingley. In his final innings on English soil, he combined with twin brother Mark at The Oval, with both scoring centuries.

He turned an already successful side into a dominant one that in many cricket watchers' views ranks with Sir Donald Bradman's 1948 Invincibles and the West Indian teams of the 1980s as one of the best cricket teams of all time. Steve Waugh's ruthless approach led to a succession of drubbings of hapless, outclassed opposition and a record run of 16 consecutive Test match wins, easily eclipsing the previous record of 11 by the West Indies. His 57 matches as captain is the fourth highest, and Australia's 41 victories under his leadership is the most of any Test captain.
Finale

Waugh lost the one-day captaincy, and indeed a spot in the one-day side, in 2001-02, but in typical style, declared that he wished to regain a place in the team — a wish he never achieved.

After playing in nine successive Ashes series, the 2002/03 rubber was to be Waugh's last against England, and was to prove one of the most emphatic victories he enjoyed against the English. The series' most memorable moment came on the second day of the Fifth Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Leading into the match Waugh had been heavily scrutinized by selectors and the media over his advancing age and lack of recent form, having only posted four fifties and one century in his last 23 Test innings. As this was the last match of the series and last Test of the Australian summer, Waugh was likely to be dropped from the team if he failed again in this match. Asked before the match about the defining moment of a career likely to soon be over, Waugh predicted gamely, "It might be yet to come." In a stunning display of determination and defiance, he then fulfilled this prophecy by scoring a chanceless century on the second afternoon. He had entered the final over of the day on 95 not out, and hit a boundary off the last ball (bowled by English off spinner Richard Dawson) to bring up his ton. Waugh left the ground to an emotional standing ovation, his Test career saved. It came to be known as his 'Perfect Day'.

Steve Waugh retired from international cricket after the fourth Test against India on 2-6 January 2004. Steve played a crucial, archetypically gritty final Test innings, compiling 80 - his highest-ever fourth innings score - on the final day to save Australia from their first home series defeat in 12 years. As he passed 50, ferries on Sydney Harbor took the rare gesture of sounding their horns in acknowledgement of the retiring champion. An all-time record number of fans and spectators had also turned out on the fifth day to bid farewell to Waugh at the SCG.

Outside cricket

Waugh helps to raise funds for a leper children's colony, "Udayan", in Calcutta. He reportedly also encouraged his players to learn about and enjoy the countries they visited and played in, presumably partly to reduce the siege mentality of some previous Australian teams playing in south Asia.

Waugh is a keen photographer and has produced several "tour diaries" which feature his images. In his latter years as a cricketer, he has written for a number of newspapers. He insists on writing them himself rather than with the assistance of professional journalists. Steve Waugh was recently stated in an article as commenting: "If you don't help people who are in need, it's just not cricket". He is also a prolific author and his ever-expanding series of tour diaries and thoughts provide an insight into the mind of Steve Waugh. Recently, he has written an autobiography called Out of my comfort zone, a book that has brought lots of controversy.

Waugh was named Australian of the Year in 2004, in recognition of both his sporting achievements and charity work. Waugh is married to Lynette with three children and was named Australian Father of the Year in 2005. Waugh will work as an athletics liaison officer for Australia at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

Waugh has been touted as a potential viable candidate for Australian government elections, although he personally disavows any political plans. Recently, rumors were published in Crikey that Waugh might be the Australian Labor Party candidate for the seat of Bennelong, although subsequently Maxine McKew was nominated.