Timing, Shane

We were expecting two retirements today, and we got them – but only one was expected. The role earmarked for Glenn McGrath was taken by Steve Harmison, retiring from one-day internationals. More of that in a moment. The big story, even though it was widely leaked, is still the retirement from Tests of Shane Warne.

For cricket, it means the end of one of the very greatest careers. Warne has been not just the most prolific bowler of all, but the foremost entertainer of the modern age. He took the neglected, marginal, difficult art of leg-spin, placed it centre stage, and made it look easy. His prodigious spin was just one of several facets of his game that have been phenomenal: his control, his stamina, his sense of drama, his bowling intelligence. He has made the game more interesting.

You could argue forever about whether he is the greatest bowler of all. He may not even be the greatest of his era – you can make a case for Murali, if you take the view, as most umpires and players do, that his action is legitimate. You can make a case for McGrath, who, unlike Warne, was able to maintain his best form wherever he went, including India.

Of the bowlers I’ve seen from further back, Malcolm Marshall was probably just ahead of all the current crop in his sensational ability to combine menace with guile, and Imran Khan was a complete cricketer, a great fast bowler who was also a fine batsman and captain. But Warne has definitely, in my book, been the greatest of all Ashes bowlers. Like Ian Botham, he is a personality player who felt personally about the romance and history of the Ashes. And thus became a major part of that history.

For Warne himself, it means a new life, probably involving more time with the kids and a microphone in his hand. He has made some bad calls in his private life, but this one, the biggest decision a cricketer has to face, he seems to have got spot-on. His powers had finally begun to fade, but the fact that he has still managed three four-fors in yet another Ashes victory suggests he may have one or two last hurrahs up his sleeve – if, unlike Bradman in 1948, he can keep a tear out of his eye. The 700th wicket will surely come fast, hastened by the cheers of a packed MCG. With two Tests to go, he could even gobble up the 14 he needs for 200 in the Ashes.

For England, it’s a last chance to continue the slightly better work of their past few meetings with Warne. They should be looking to shut out the emotion of the moment, as well as the towering reputation and the inevitable sledges, and make him feel every one of his 37 years. The way Ian Bell (at last) played him on Sunday, with spring heels and an upright bat, will do nicely.

Harmison’s decision is more questionable. Semi-retirement is a good option and one that more players should consider: it has clearly helped Warne. Harmison hasn’t been working as a one-day bowler, and he clearly struggles as much with long absences from home as he does with the one-day wide rule. But he is custom-built for the Caribbean, as he showed in 2004. If he was going to quit before the World Cup, he would have been better off doing it last summer. But I guess he didn’t know he was going to want to. These decisions are not easy.

There is now yet another opportunity for England’s younger brigade. Chris Tremlett is a good pick, a tall, awkward, hit-the-splice bowler who just might be coming through now after shining at the Academy in Perth. But he should be there alongside Stuart Broad, not instead of him. How can the same selectors be wise enough to pick Monty Panesar and dumb enough to leave out Broad?