Who is the greatest Aussie cricketer of the 21st century?

Australia has no shortage of cricketing legends, but one player in particular can be considered the greatest of the 21st century.

Australia has no shortage of cricketing legends, with the country consistently producing an array of stars.

But as the 21st century continues to unfold, almost weekly through the Aussie summer, fans and pundits debate who is the greatest cricketer of the modern era.

To celebrate the launch of the new news.com.au app, we’re celebrating the people, places and events we’ll never forget from the first quarter of the 21st century by asking for Australia’s view. Our 25@25 series will finally put to bed the debates you’ve been having at the pub and around dinner tables for years – and some that are just too much fun not to include.

From the pace and leadership of current Australian Test captain Pat Cummins to the unparalleled batting prowess of Ricky Ponting, to the spin king himself Shane Warne, each player has a serious claim to GOAT (greatest of all time) status.

But after news.com.au delved into the debate, it can be settled once and for all as former cricket greats and those closest to the players themselves unanimously declared without missing a beat that one man in particular stands above the rest.

Which Aussies can stake a claim as the 21st century cricket GOAT?

We’re including cricket played from 2000 onwards. So for this reason Steve Waugh, who retired from Test cricket in January 2004, is a tough omission.

In 1999 he was appointed Test captain and led an Australian team that in the years ahead scored a record 16 successive straight victories, truly incredible.

And while his crowning year was 2001 when he won the Allan Border medal, Tugga and his lucky red handkerchief didn’t quite squeeze into our top 10.

Who is the greatest Aussie female cricketer of the 21st century?

The two women up for consideration are Elysse Perry and Meg Lanning.

They are unanimously considered the best two women to ever play the game for Australia.

The only others who could possibly be in that conversation are Karen Rolton and Belinda Clark.

However, Clark retired at the end of 2005 and her body of work in that time isn’t enough to lay claim to being the greatest of the 21st century.

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While Rolton is an Australian cricket icon, it would be a hard case to make that she has a superior resume this century than the aforementioned duo.

And when news.com.au asked sports presenter Mark Howard who springs to mind, he immediately said it is between Lanning and Perry.

“It’s very hard to split Meg Lanning and Ellyse Perry. Meg Lanning is the best batter in the female game I’ve ever seen and just gets runs when required,” Howard told news.com.au.

“Ellyse in the last three or four years she’s completely changed her game and been truly exceptional. Perry has been the most dominant female cricketer around the world for the 20th century no doubt.

“And the fact that she’s represented her nation in World Cups in two different sports and has scored a goal shows she’s just a phenomenon.”

Who is the greatest Australian male cricketer of the 21st century?

Australia has been blessed with some incredible cricketers in the past few decades but there can only be one GOAT.

Ponting completely transformed what it meant to be a No.3. With an average of 51.85 and a highest score of 257, he lays claim to the third most Test hundreds in the history of the game.

Ponting was also the definition of a true leader, someone who when he opens his mouth, you stop whatever you are doing to listen.

Then there are the likes of Smith and Clarke, whose batting statistics hold them among the greats not just in Australian cricket but world cricket.

While with the ball Cummins and McGrath both revolutionised fast bowling in their own way.

Cummins has also won everything possible as captain of Australia, and McGrath is seen by many still as Australia’s greatest-ever fast bowler.

Then there’s Lyon, the only spinner since Warne to be a regular in the Australian Test side, undroppable throughout his Test career and a bowler who thrives on any pitch condition.

The tweaker sits third on the list of most wickets in Australian Test cricket history with 556, just one behind McGrath, and by the time he retires will almost certainly be second behind only Warne.

While Gilchrist revolutionised what it means to be a wicketkeeper.

Before ‘Gilly’ you could be just a quality keeper who could barely bat but his range of free-flowing strokes and quick game-changing runs has changed the requirements of modern wicketkeepers.

But when asking who is the best player of this century, there was one name I kept hearing, Shane Warne.

When I asked fellow Aussie cricket legend Adam Gilchrist he didn’t even hesitate.

“There is more to it (the GOAT debate) than just statistics,” Gilchrist told news.com.au earlier this year.

“Shane Warne is the greatest ever.

“Away from his wickets, Warnie was also an incredible batsman. He just left way too many runs out there when he played. I don’t even think he knew his own batting talent.

“When it comes down to pure batting and bowling talent, catching and just all-round brilliant cricket brain, Warnie is No.1.

“For Warnie to achieve what he did and especially living the way he did and still managed to achieve it all, it shows he is a true champion.”

Howard echoed a similar sentiment.

“Without a doubt number one I would say Warnie because he changed the game. We hadn’t seen a leg spinner like Shane before Shane and we haven’t seen a spinner like Shane since,” Howard said.

“So if you compare him to all other leg spinners he’s that far in front statistically and then you can get to the bums on seats factor.

“Any time Warnie was bowling you couldn’t get out of your seat. At the game or watching on telly, which I’ve got some extremely fond memories of growing up, you are glued to the game.

“He is best clearly even though only half his career was in this century for me. He’s not just the best but the most exciting, the most effective, the most captivating, the most controversial and the most extraordinary.”

“Every time I sat next to Shane in a commentary box, which was one of the great experiences of my life, he would say stuff that I would think just think wow,” Howard added.

“You would be blown away every time he talks and think gee he would have made a fantastic captain of Australia.”

Warne truly revolutionised the art of leg-spin bowling and had a staggering tally of over 700 Test wickets.

His ability to turn matches single-handedly, coupled with his charisma, captivated fans worldwide and left an indelible legacy in Australian cricket, making him the Aussie cricket goat of the 21st century.

But at the end of the day like with any GOAT debate, it is all a matter of opinion and goes far further than just statistics.

So is it fair to declare Warnie the 21st century GOAT or does another cricketer deserve that title?

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Originally published as Who is the greatest Aussie cricketer of the 21st century?