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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Langer to quit after Sydney Test | Langer to quit after Sydney Test |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| Batsman Justin Langer has become the latest Australian to announce his retirement from Test cricket. | Batsman Justin Langer has become the latest Australian to announce his retirement from Test cricket. |
| The fifth Ashes Test, which starts at 2330 GMT, will now be the last for Langer, Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath. | The fifth Ashes Test, which starts at 2330 GMT, will now be the last for Langer, Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath. |
| He made his debut against West Indies in 1993 and has scored 7,650 runs at an average of 45.26. | He made his debut against West Indies in 1993 and has scored 7,650 runs at an average of 45.26. |
| "There hasn't been a waking moment for the last 20 years where I haven't thought about playing Test cricket, so this is a tough moment," he said. | "There hasn't been a waking moment for the last 20 years where I haven't thought about playing Test cricket, so this is a tough moment," he said. |
| "I know in my heart it's the right thing to do. They say 'Go out on your terms and on top of your game' and I think I'm doing that. | "I know in my heart it's the right thing to do. They say 'Go out on your terms and on top of your game' and I think I'm doing that. |
| "I retire from this game having played with some of the greatest players of all time. It's been a privilege to play with Shane and Glenn and Adam Gilchrist, the greatest wicket-keeper of all time, Matthew Hayden and Ricky Ponting, who is the greatest batsman this country has produced after Bradman," the 36-year-old added. | |
| Unlike fellow Western Australian Damien Martyn, who announced his retirement from all cricket following the second Test against England, Langer will continue to play at state level. And he will also be in England during the summer after accepting an offer to return to Somerset to play county cricket. | Unlike fellow Western Australian Damien Martyn, who announced his retirement from all cricket following the second Test against England, Langer will continue to play at state level. And he will also be in England during the summer after accepting an offer to return to Somerset to play county cricket. |
| Langer was primarily a middle order batsman during the first phase of his Test career but reinvented himself as an opener during the 2001 tour to England. | |
| Short of form during the tour, he had to wait until the final Test at The Oval to make his first appearance of the series but marked the occasion with an innings of 102. | |
| Since then, he and Hayden have been inseparable at the top of the order, becoming one of the greatest opening partnerships of the modern era. | |
| Justin Langer has walked as an equal with great players and that will leave memories that last even longer than his impressive playing statistics Cricket Australia's James Sutherland | |
| Langer made his highest Test score of 250 against England at Melbourne in december 2002 and began the current series with an innings of 100 not out at Brisbane, his 23rd century for Australia. | |
| It was a typically determined and brave effort by a player who had suffered a serious concussion when he was struck on the head by a ball from South Africa's Makhaya Ntini in his previous Test in April. | |
| "After I got hit I wondered if it would have any impact on me. But I started practising and facing bouncers again to make sure any doubts were eliminated," he said, prior to the start of the Ashes series. | |
| Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland paid tribute to Langer's achievements since first wearing the famous baggy green cap. | |
| "Justin recently became the first West Australian and only the 10th Australian to play 100 Tests for Australia. | |
| "That of itself is a rare accomplishment and is a measure of his achievements as a cricketer, and is a tribute to his ability to fight his way back to the top after setbacks early in his international career. | |
| "But the pride and dignity with which he represented his country, and the calm authority he has exercised within a team of great, once-in-a-lifetime champions, is something cricket fans will remember most," he commented. |