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SYDNEY - Australian paceman Glenn McGrath hasn't ruled out extending his Test career beyond the Ashes series and says he won't necessarily follow Shane Warne into retirement.
McGrath insisted today he still had plenty of cricket left in him and he was miffed that everyone was assuming next
month's Test in Sydney would be his last.
"All I did was finish (the third Test) in Perth, come home and I've done nothing since and I've had journalists camped on the front door and hassling me at home and everything," McGrath told Sydney radio 2KY today.
"For me, it's just another day at the office."
The 36-year-old said he was looking forward to the domestic one-day series and the World Cup in the West Indies in March before making any decisions about his long-term playing future.
The Daily Telegraph reported that Test cricket's all-time leading wicket-taker would fly to Melbourne today ahead of the Boxing Day clash with England with a letter confirming his retirement after the SCG Test from January 2-6.
"To be honest, I haven't said anything. It's funny where it all comes from," McGrath said.
"To me, I'm just preparing for another game. Nothing's changed since the end of the Perth Test match, apart from the fact that Shane Warne's retiring at the end of the Sydney Test.
"So it's funny how Warney decides that and ... whether it's in his wake and I'm being pulled along as well or whether the media think it's time for me to go, I don't know."
Asked directly whether or not Sydney would be his last Test, a cagey McGrath said: "All I'm saying is that, to me, it's business as usual".
"I'm just preparing for these next two Test matches, then it's the one-day series and then I'll take it from there."
Complicating McGrath's decision is the fact Australia's next Test after the Ashes series isn't for another 11 months.
"It is (a big break) and I wouldn't mind a bit of an off-season. It'll be good," McGrath said.
"I guess we'll have to wait and see, won't we, (whether I will play on).
"How can I say it without saying one thing or the other?
"I don't look that far ahead. In previous years, I haven't said I'm looking forward to the Test in eight months or 12 months so, for me, it's just another day at the office.
"I'm heading down to Melbourne today, trying to get packed - the place looks a mess - that's where I'm at at the moment.
"I'm still enjoying it. I'm still loving playing and I've still got a lot of cricket in me."
If he does carry on, McGrath said it wouldn't be the same without Warne.
"There's only been 15, 20 Test matches, if that, that I haven't played with Shane so it is like losing part of the family," he said.
"I remember when Mark and Steve (Waugh) retired, it sort of does feel strange for a while."
Since debuting against New Zealand in 1993, McGrath has taken 555 wickets at 21.65 in a glorious 122-match Test career.
- AAP
