If you’ve watched any of the cricket this summer, you might have noticed that Adam Gilchrist seems to be attracting a lot of attention.  And while Gilly has always been extremely popular, right now every game has special meaning because it will be his last few months playing cricket for Australia.  Five weeks ago Gilly announced to the world that he would retire at the end of this summer and ever since the cricket has become Gilly’s magical farewell tour with standing ovations, special Gilly memorabilia, Gilly-chanting (whenever he goes near the ball…. which is quite frequently) and many fond farewells.  

So if you’re wondering what all the fuss might be about, GG is here to give you some answers.  

In short Australia has gone Gilly-crazy because Adam is one of those special few players who has forever changed the way cricket is played. Before Gilly, wicketkeepers were really only expected to stop the ball, take catches and sledge the batsmen.  If they happened to score a few runs when they were batting, well that was a pleasant surprise that the team wouldn’t expect them to repeat too often.  Gilly broke this mold as he is every bit as good a batsmen as he is a wicketkeeper.  

In test matches his average approached 50 (which is the hallmark of great batters) and in one dayers he has the ability to win a game almost on his own (like the 2007 World Cup final where he scored 149).  Gilly’s prowess with the bat means that nowadays if you want to wicketkeep for your state or Australia, you almost have to be good enough to hold your spot in the team as a specialist batsmen.  

Gilly also manages to turn the excitement dial up to 11 in every match he plays.  When he comes out to bat, the mood around the ground changes.  Gilly hits the ball so high, so far, so frequently that sixes and fours are common place. No ground in the world is big enough for Gilly’s hitting and no bowler is safe from his onslaught.  

On top of all of this he seems like a genuinely nice guy who is a family man and, if you’ve ever seen him in the Twenty20 games, he’s a pretty good commentator to boot. So thanks for all of the memories Gilly, while you might be leaving the cricket field we hope to hear you return in the commentary box very soon.  

And if you’ve never watched Australia play a one day cricket game now might be a good time to start as there are only a few more opportunities to see one of the great entertainers of the game finish their career on a high.