Ian Healy retires

Australian cricket great Ian Healy today announced his immediate retirement from all cricket.

Healy, 35, has been a permanent fixture in the Australian side for the past eleven years, missing just one Test - because of a broken thumb - since his debut against Pakistan in 1988 amassing five world records along the way.

He holds the record for the most dismissals by a keeper in Test history with his final tally of 395 made up of 366 catches and 29 stumpings.

But his record-breaking efforts extend beyond his skill behind the stumps.

Healy is one of only five Australians to have played more than 100 Tests, and his final tally of 119 matches is the highest by any keeper in international history. His number of caps is second only to Allan Border's Australian record total of 156 matches.

His tally of 4356 Test runs leaves him in fifteenth place in the list of all-time Australian run-scorers, with only England's Alan Knott (4389 runs) having scored more runs as a keeper at the highest level.

Healy's record also includes 234 dismissals (195 catches and 39 stumpings) - another record - in 168 one-day internationals.

Healy said: "It's always a sad time when something you love doing comes to an end but I can reflect on a career that has been satisfying and hugely enjoyable.

"I've been lucky enough to play in a great side with a great bunch of players and the memories from my time in that group will stay with me forever.

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank all my team-mates and supporters down the years who have helped make my time with the Australian team so good."

Paying tribute to Healy, Australian Cricket Board (ACB) Chairman Denis Rogers said: "Ian's achievements at the top level mean he will stand alongside the greatest players ever produced by Australia.

"It's no accident that Ian's time in the side has coincided with our rise from being a moderate Test team to one which can now justifiably claim to be the best in the world. His part in that rise can't be under-estimated."

Australia captain Stephen Waugh added his tribute when he said: "Throughout Heals' time in the national side he was our heartbeat and his enthusiasm and encouragement during long hours in the field were vital in making sure we never lost our way.

"Behind the stumps Heals' work was always top-class but the true sign of his greatness was the way he kept to Warney. There's no doubt Warney and the rest of us owe a great deal to the skills of Heals.

"With the bat he had the gift of being able to alter the tempo of a match through his positive play. It's a mark of his big-match temperament that his four first-class hundreds have all come in Test matches. Heals' always seemed to get runs when they were needed most."