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Mark Taylor

When Mark Taylor AO retired international cricket, the curtain fell on an outstanding career as a player and Test captain. In a stunning farewell tribute, the influential international cricket bible Wisden saluted Mark Anthony Taylor as 'the greatest modern day captain'.

During the decade the 1999 Australian of the Year opened the batting for his country and the five years he was its highly-acclaimed and successful captain, the New South Welshman, voted Australia's most admired sportsperson by Inside Sport magazine in the year of his retirement, was in the vanguard of a triumphant era for Australian cricket, departing the game with his country clearly the No. 1 Test-playing nation.

During the Taylor regime, the record books were constantly updated on both a team and personal front. Taylor, himself, left the game with several proud personal milestones.

Among them was his record-equalling 334 not out in the second Test against Pakistan at Peshawar in October, 1998.

His history-making, 12-hour innings, compiled 564 balls and laced with 32 fours and one six, enabled him to share the mantle as Australia's highest run scorer in Test cricket with the incomparable Sir Donald Bradman, who scored his 334 against England at Leeds 68 years earlier. The score was bettered in 2003 by another Australian left-hand opening batsman, Matthew Hayden, who scored 380 against Zimbabwe in Perth.