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Brett Lee compared it to the day he received his first baggy green. A milestone to rival any other – if not surpass all of them – in his eight-year international career.
Having long vied for the title of the world’s quickest bowler, the Australian pace spearhead became the fastest man to 300 one-day international wickets today after claiming the milestone scalp in just his 171st game.
Darren Sammy, caught and bowled Lee for three, was the wicket in Australia’s series-clinching seven-wicket victory over the West Indies in the third one-dayer in Grenada.
Only two overs earlier, Lee thought he had claimed No.300 when Denesh Ramdin skied a similar return catch, only for the umpire at square leg Asad Rauf to signal no ball because of the height of paceman’s delivery.
The false start, though, did nothing to stifle celebrations when Lee finally joined Glenn McGrath as the second Australian – and 10th overall – to the magical figure.
“I’m so honoured and so proud. I don’t normally fuss over these types of things but to reach 300 is a very special feeling and one I’ll always cherish,” said Lee, who with 289 wickets is also on track to eclipse 300 scalps in Test cricket later this year.
“You think about times when you get your baggy green cap or you take your first Test wicket.
“And then you think that only two Australians have now achieved this dream of taking 300, it’s very special.
“I’m hoping for a few more. The body’s feeling great. I’m only 31 years of age. We’ll see what happens.”
Lee claimed he only found out after the match that he had been the quickest to 300.
The NSW paceman didn’t just eclipse the old record of Waqar Younis, he smashed it, beating the Pakistan great (186 ODIs) by 15 games and some 400 balls (8,733 to Waqar’s 9,166) to the mark.
As if to further mark the occasion, Lee then pulled off one of the most spectacular run outs of his career when he soccer-style side-footed the ball into the stumps from close range to find Daren Powell just short of his ground.
It was a show of skill any player from today’s Euro 2008 final would have been proud of, but Lee was, himself, claimed it was nothing but “an absolute fluke”.
“My soccer skills are terrible,” Lee said.
“It was an absolute fluke. If I tried that a hundred times, I think I would kick it over once.
“If you’ve seen me kick a soccer ball, I’m very, very ordinary. I’m neither left or right footed.”
FASTEST TO 300 WICKETS IN ONE-DAY INTERNATIONAL CRICKET
Name Matches
Brett Lee (Aus) 171
Waqar Younis (Pak) 186
Glenn McGrath (Aus) 200
Muttiah Muralitharan (SL) 202
Wasim Akram (Pak) 208
Shaun Pollock (SA) 217
Javagal Srinath (Ind) 219
Anil Kumble (Ind) 234
Chaminda Vaas (SL) 235
Sanath Jayasuriya (SL) 396
MOST WICKETS IN ODI CRICKET
Wasim Akram (Pak) 502
Muttiah Muralitharan (SL) 466
Waqar Younis (Pak) 416
Chaminda Vaas (SL) 394
Shaun Pollock (SA) 393
Glenn McGrath (Aus) 381
Anil Kumble (Ind) 337
Javagal Srinath (Ind) 315
Sanath Jayasuriya (SL) 309
Brett Lee (Aus) 300
BRETT LEE’S ODI RECORD
M Wkts Avg Econ SR BB 5w
171 300 22.83 4.70 29.1 5/22 8
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