Glenn McGrath

The most accurate fast bowler in cricket history — Glenn McGrath's 563 Test wickets at an average of 21.64 were achieved through metronomic precision rather than raw pace. His ability to land the ball on the same spot repeatedly and generate movement off the seam troubled every batsman in the world. Took five wickets in an Ashes innings ten times and was instrumental in four consecutive Australian World Cup victories. His partnership with Shane Warne formed the most devastating bowling combination in modern Test cricket.

Glenn Donald McGrath was born in Dubbo, New South Wales in 1970 and became the most economical and accurate fast bowler in cricket history, taking 563 Test wickets at 21.64 across 124 matches — the most by any Australian and the fourth-highest by a fast bowler in Test history. He took 381 ODI wickets in 250 matches — also a record among fast bowlers at the time of his retirement. He played for New South Wales and Western Australia domestically and had a county stint at Hampshire. He delivered 29,248 balls in Test cricket. His line and length — targeting the top of off stump relentlessly from a height of 6ft 5in — made him the most disciplined seam bowler of his generation. He took 8 for 24 against Pakistan in 2004 — the best figures in a Test innings by an Australian. He took 36 Ashes wickets in the 2001 series — a record for a fast bowler in a single Ashes series. He won the Ashes 5 times and the Cricket World Cup twice (1999, 2003). His partnership with Shane Warne formed the most devastating bowling combination in Test cricket since Lillee and Thomson. He was Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1998. He founded the McGrath Foundation for breast cancer nursing after his wife Jane's death from cancer in 2008.

• Ashes winner 1994–95, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2002–03 (Australia)
• ICC Cricket World Cup 1999, 2003 (Australia)
• Wisden Cricketer of Year 1998
• Allan Border Medal 2003
• Test wickets 563 — 4th all-time fast bowlers