Shane Keith Warne made an unassuming entry into Test Cricket in 1992, replacing Peter Taylor and taking 1-150 and recording match figures of 1-228 – admittedly against the Indians, the premier players of spin.

His haul of 7-52 against the West Indies in 1992 at Melbourne cemented his place in the team and from there the legend grew ... from the 'ball of the century' that bowled Mike Gatting in The Ashes series of 1993 through to the unchallenged period of dominance of the Baggy Greens throughout the nineties and into the new millennium.

Warne’s impact was the revival of what was regarded as a dying art in the world of cricket after the golden era of pace bowling, with Jeff Thomson and Dennis Lillee  the pre-eminent Australian strike bowlers, and, of course, the fearsome attack of the West Indians.

‘Warne’s impact was the revival of what was regarded as a dying art in the world of cricket after the golden era of pace bowling...’


Despite off-Field notoriety – bookmaker controversies, banned substances and numerous infidelities – Warne was the only bowler to be counted among the five Wisden players of the century.

It is unlikely the world will ever see his like again. However, Australia appears to be without any real frontline spin options and this will be an issue in the future.

Stuart MacGill, with more than 200 Test wickets to his name, has lived under the shadow of Warne, and despite strong recent domestic form, he is 37 years old and has consistently struggled with fitness. However, he is the only frontline spin option selected by Cricket Australia on the list of their 25 centrally contracted players. Brad Hogg, the preferred option recently as the starting Test spinner, has now retired.

Promising but terribly inconsistent spin options Cullen Bailey and Dan Cullen have both been dropped from the frontline contracts after poor domestic form.

Beau Casson, a solid all-rounder and 'chinaman' bowler, seems to be in the forefront of Australian selectors' mind, having been named in the squad to tour the Caribbean in the coming months and been awarded a Central CA contract despite a less than impressive 2007. Victorian Bryce McGain, a solid finger spinner, is an option, but as he is in his mid-30s he is not considered a viable alternative by selectors.

Australian Test captain Ricky Ponting has admitted that there will need to be a stronger focus on his part-time options, namely Michael Clarke and Andrew Symonds – both certainties in the Australian XI, but not first-choice or strike spin options.

Australia still remains as powerful as ever with strong batting options and an excellent pace battery led by Brett Lee – believed by many to be the world’s premier pace bowler.  But it seems they have consigned themselves to having no real spin option at all and life without Warne could be grim, as now the Baggy Greens have shown the world their Achilles heel.