Lillee claims Benaud’s record

Press, 11 February 1981, Page 38

Lillee claims Benaud’s record

NZPA Melbourne A flushed and proud Dennis Keith Lillee yesterday became the highest wicket taker in Australian test history. Lillee took his two hundred and forty-ninth test wicket shortly before lunch on the fourth day of the third and final test against India at the Melbourne Cricket Ground when he had the opener, Chetan Chauhan, caught at point by Bruce Yardley. It was Lillee’s twelve thousand, seven hundred and sixteenth test delivery. ■The dismissal took him

one ahead of the leg-spin-ner Richie Benaud — one of Lillee’s greatest heroes. “The guy I idolised was the guy I took it from, but Richie was one of the first to come and congratulate me,” Lillee said. At lunch Benaud presented him with two magnums of champagne. “It’s a great honour to have my record broken by such a marvellous bowler,” said Benaud. When the historic dismissal occurred only minutes before lunch the crowd of 5000 gave Lillee a sustained standing ovation, and he was mobbed

in centre-field by his Australian team-mates. “I am very proud. I was far more concerned about doing my best — if it happened, great, if not, bad luck. “Now I’ve got It I suppose I can relax a little bit more,” he said. Lillee said he had not expected to break the record on the controversial Melbourne Cricket Ground wicket; “I didn’t think I would get it here, quite honestly,” he said. But for his two-year stint with Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket or-

ganisation, Lillee would almost certainly now hold the world record for test dismissals. Now playing in his forty-eighth test match, Lillee took 67 wickets in his 14 World Series Cricket international matches, excluding oneday matches. ' ' They would have given him a total of 314 dismissals — five ahead of the official world record of the West Indian spinner, Lance Gibbs. Lillee also took 20 wickets in the 1971-72 series against the Rest of the World.

Benuad took his 248 wickets in 63 test matches, bowling an average of 77 balls for each wicket. He took 10 wickets in one match and captured five wickets in an innings 16 times. Lillee has now taken 10 wickets in a match on five occasions and five wickets in an innings 17 times. The brilliant Western Australian fast bowler also exceeded Benaud’s strike-rate —- 50.95 compared to Benaud’s 76.97. As Benaud said: “Dennis Lillee — a magnificent cricketer.”