The best bowler is not blonde

UMPIRE'S POST

It is likely that Muttiah Muralitharan will surpass Shane Warne's record of 708 wickets in the next Test he plays. If it happens, Murali will have played a full 31 Tests fewer than Warne's 145.

Yet, the Sri Lankan bowler will end up a pariah. Such is the determination of the Western establishment to ensure Warne's status as a legend.

This was most visible when the panel selecting the world Test team of the year for the inaugural ICC awards in 2004 omitted Murali in favour of Warne.

Warne, out for many of the preceding 12 months because of a doping ban, had taken 36 wickets in five Tests, conceding 22.25 runs for each "" all against fifth-ranked Sri Lanka.

It was commendable, but paled in comparison to Murali's 73 wickets at 18.56 in nine tests against Australia (28 wickets), England (26), South Africa (5) and Zimbabwe (14). Australia and England were ranked one and two.

Murali's detractors don't tire of arguing that most of his victims are either from the lowly Zimbabwe and Bangladesh, or are hapless tail enders. Smartly, they do not test their contention against statistics, which show that Murali has claimed as many top-order wickets as Warne.

Murali, who does not get to choose his opponents, indeed has a phenomenal record against Bangladesh, which has played more Tests against Sri Lanka than any other top side, and Zimbabwe. But the drop is only marginal against the other teams. Since 2000, when Bangladesh started playing Tests, Murali has taken 353 wickets in 51 Tests at 20.87 against sides other than these two.

It is often said that a player's greatness is judged by things more significant than numbers. That is where Murali stands head and shoulders above Warne.

The lone Tamil in the team of a strife-torn country, he revived the art of off-spin, with some help from Pakistan's Saqlain Mushtaq. Braving years of controversy over chucking charges "" tested and cleared at least three times after tests in the developed world "" Murali troubled the best players of spin, such as the entire Indian team including Sachin Tendulkar. Only Brian Lara mastered him.

Warne, always coming behind excellent fast bowlers, unlike Murali, has a dismal record against India and Tendulkar gave him nightmares.

Murali also played a lot fewer matches against England, Warne's favourite team, known for being susceptible to any slow delivery that does not follow a straight line.

You won't mind your son idolising Murali. He never made news for notorious threesome romps, lewd text messages to women, drugs or smoking. Besides, Warne never played against the best team of the last decade and a half.