KEY POINTS:
You could almost feel the collective shudder sweep through the world batting fraternity this week as Muttiah Muralitharan declared his intention to continue playing after next year's World Cup - and possibly until he tops the 800-test-wicket mark.
Arguably the greatest spinner to stalk a cricket ground, the
34-year-old Sri Lankan has been in devastating form over the past six months and is now preparing to continue the assault in Christchurch next week.
The little right-armer already has 657 wickets to his name, second only to Shane Warne's 689, and with time and enthusiasm still on his side, appears a decent bet to play on and break every record in the book.
"I've got no thoughts of retirement after the World Cup," said Murali as Sri Lanka prepared for their tour match against Otago in Dunedin. "I'm enjoying my cricket and 34 isn't that old for a spinner, so I think I'll be able to carry on for a while.
"Who knows what will happen, but I've got 657 wickets now and I guess 800 would be within my grasp."
This is no exaggeration.
In fact, the way he's been going over the past six months, you'd have to say the cheerful destroyer is looking hungrier with every outing, rather than experiencing any waning of his powers.
Take his most recent four tests as an example. In the last two against England and the only two at home against South Africa, he managed an astonishing 43 wickets at 14.97, including five five-wicket bags and four 10-wicket (match) bags.
At his zenith, Murali crucified England in the third test at Nottingham, finishing with eight for 70 as Sri Lanka shared a series they always seemed destined to lose.
He isn't so much creeping up towards Warne on the wicket-taking list, as charging at him like a demented tail-ender, casting aside challenges and destroying opposition batting line-ups with comical regularity.
Yet Murali, who hasn't played a test in New Zealand since 1997, shies away from comparisons with Warne, preferring to highlight the differences between himself and the brash Aussie.
"People come and go in cricket, but I think it would be nice to be remembered as a good person, first and foremost, rather than someone who has taken X number of wickets," he said.
"Your results will always be there, but for me, it's more important to be remembered as a decent human being, who played the game cleanly.
"I never compare myself with Warne and I'm not competing with him to take the highest number of wickets. He's the greatest bowler I've seen, but he's a wrist-spinner and I'm an off-spinner and we've got nothing really in common."
Talk about understatement. While Warne's life story may yet inspire a new Carry-On movie, Murali is softly-spoken, extremely moderate and diplomatic, and has so far avoided a public life of scandal and ridicule.
Murali is also the owner of the "doosra" or wrong-'un, the most feared and potent weapon in world cricket, and the delivery which has led directly or indirectly to the bulk of his wickets. He said yesterday his variation ball - which turns in the opposite direction expected - continued to be a work in progress as he sought to disguise it from batsmen who were now turning to computer and video technology for help.
"Yes, I keep evolving the wrong-un, keep working on variations because batsmen are always studying ways of spotting it, and understanding it.
"Lots of batsmen pick it, but hardly any of them pick it all the time, and that's the key."
Murali said he felt privileged to play in such an exciting era for slow bowlers, and was adamant the present cluster of top-quality spinners had helped change and invigorate the international game at a time when it needed it.
Apart from Warne, he pointed to the likes of Indians Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, Pakistan's Saqlain Mushtaq and Mushtaq Ahmed, and New Zealand's Daniel Vettori as bowlers who helped change the international landscape.
"Spin bowling has been good for cricket over the past decade; it's been a spinners' era," he said.
"The pitches had become flatter but the spinners started making the difference; they started winning tests again.
As for next week's test, Murali said he wasn't expecting much turn from the New Zealand pitches, believing it was more likely the seamers would hold the upper-hand hand, and that the spinners would play a secondary role.
He's played four tests in New Zealand but the most recent was nine years ago when Sri Lanka lost each of their showdowns at Dunedin and Hamilton.
"New Zealand hasn't really been a great tour for spinners," he said.
"It usually offers more assistance to the seam bowlers and nobody else gets a look in - but we'll have to wait and see in Christchurch."
The top 10 Test wicket-takers
1. Shane Warne 689
2. Muraliltharan 657
3. Glenn McGrath 549
4. Anil Kumble 533
5. Courtney Walsh 519
6. Kapil Dev 434
7. Richard Hadlee 431
8. Wasim Akram 414
9. Curtly Ambrose 405
10. Shaun Pollock 395