Matthew Hayden Retires

Today was the day we had been anticipating all summer, for better or worse. Matt Hayden's time was drawing to an end. Should he have bowed out gracefully after being, in many people's opinions, gifted, a 100th Test Match?

Should he have retired at the top of his game, alongside immortals McGrath and Warne, his stalwart opening partner Langer, and that jewel number four Martyn? Or has he made the wrong decision, and should he have provided a senior head going into the 2009 Ashes?

Personally, I believe retiring after the series in India would have been the ideal time to retire, and allow a younger player—more than likely New South Welshman Phillip Hughes—to step up at the beginning of the Australian summer. Instead, Phil Jacques will return to the fold in the return series to South Africa, with Hughes his untried deputy.

One of only three players to score four consecutive Test Centuries, Hayden will be remembered as the strongman of the Australian top order, the player who crushed inferior attacks (380 vs Bangladesh 2003, 197 and 103 vs England 2002), and dominated stronger ones (hundreds against Murali in Sri Lanka, and 119 and 203 against India in India).

Over 8,000 runs at a strike rate of 60, Hayden's 30 centuries were memorable, and his partnership with Justin Langer over the journey was a fantastic one, made even more remarkable by his early Test days, with just seven matches over a four-year period.

Whilst it is easy to laud Hayden's enforcer role over his 103 Test career, it is equally as easy to forget the fact that he was also the more quiet achiever in one of the greatest ODI opening partnerships of the 2000's, with Adam Gilchrist.

Over 6,000 runs at an average exceeding 40, Hayden imposed himself on the one day arena, in a precursor to his dominance over the Test arena. Ten ODI centuries is a fantastic career by anyone's standards, and his axing from the ODI team must be considered questionable, since, in that form of the game, his last three innings were over the half-century mark.

Destined to be considered one of the greatest, if not the greatest, post-war opening batsman of Australia's test history, Hayden will be honoured before tonights second T20 international.

Jack Masters