SOME athletes give up the games they have dominated for so long at the peak of their powers.
And you have to wonder, why would you retire when you’re still so good?
Inspired by New Zealand cricket captain Brendon McCullum’s remarkable knock against the Australians in his last Test match, we’ve taken a look in the archives to find out which players absolutely dominated in their last outings and probably could have kept going if they wanted to.
Brendon McCullum’s record ton
It was his 101st and last Test and it might be his finest. Striding out to bat for New Zealand against arch rival Australia, McCullum says he was “trying to hit every ball for four or six” – and he nearly did. Sporting a poor record against the Australians, all that was almost forgotten as he slammed the fastest Test century ever recorded by a batsman. It took him just 54 balls to reach three figures, surpassing the record held jointly by West Indian great Viv Richards and Pakistani Misbah ul-Haq, which was 56. When he finished, he had 145 from 79 balls, with 21 fours and six sixes, rescuing the Kiwis from 3/32. “The best form of defence was for us to try and attack. It’s not always going to come off but I guess we got a little bit of luck along the way. McCullum will go down as one of the most explosive batsmen ever and will be sorely missed in the cricketing arena
Pete Sampras US Open Final
Let’s all pretend that game in Adelaide in 2002 didn’t happen. Sampras real last game was on the biggest stage – the US Open final. And he thoroughly dominated his great rival Andre Agassi in a four set win that would stamp the great one as the best men’s tennis player of all time. At 31, time and a huge schedule had appeared to have ravaged Sampras, he had been whacked previously by Lleyton Hewitt and Marat Safin and it looked like his star had finally dwindled. Spud world number 71 beat him at Wimbledon and every one thought it was the end. But it wasn’t. Drawing on everything he had, Sampras made his way through the US Open draw, knocking off the likes of Andy Roddick, Tommy Haas and Greg Rusedski, before putting Agassi to the sword in a 6-3, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 win. He maintains it is the best tennis he’s ever played and it’s hard to argue, 33 aces, 84 winners and a 14th title to cap off his brilliant career.
John Elway retires a Super Bowl MVP
This is particularly poignant in the wake of fellow Bronco Peyton Manning’s Super Bowl winning effort, but the great Elway’s effort in Super Bowl XXXIII dwarfs his contemporary. Elway led the Broncos to a 33-19 win in January 1999 and earned Super Bowl MVP honors by completing 18 of 29 passes for 336 yards, one touchdown and one interception, adding to that by also running for a touch down. It was the complete performance Bronco’s fans had come to expect from Elway and then it was over. It was the perfect ending for one of the all time greats, a man who was told he was not up to winning in the big games. He was 38 years old, but age had not wearied him. Elway was the oldest quarterback to start a Super Bowl. Elway relayed a funny story after the match: At 18 he told his dad he wanted to be the best quarterback who ever lived. He might have come close.
Black Caviar retires unbeaten
Superstar sprinting mare Black Caviar captured the imagination of the racing world with her record breaking unbeaten run of 25 races that included 15 group ones, eclipsing the great Kingston Town. Black Caviar’s racing career started at Flemington on April 18, 2009 and ended with nearly $8 million in winnings and a brilliant story that racing heads will tell their kids and grandkids. Twice Australian Horse of the Year, she was the number one horse in the world, and, in her final race, smashed them in the 2013 TJ Smith Stakes at Randwick in Sydney. With Luke Nolan aboard, as he was in all but three of her races, Nelly, as she was affectionately called by trainer Peter Moody, beat Epaulette and Bel Sprinter to finish three lengths ahead storming home after being position in the middle throughout the 1200m race. She took control at the 300m mark and nothing looked like touching her. People used to talk about what a superstar Kingston Town was. Now we all talk about the great Black Caviar.
Mike does it twice
If he’s not the greatest sportsman ever, he is certainly the most popular. Chicago Bulls NBA legend Michael Jordan is a unanimous choice as the greatest basketballer of all time and his retirement performances will go down in history as some of the most storied efforts in finals of all time. He did it not once, but twice. In 1993, he lead the Bulls to their third straight NBA title, defeating the Phoenix Suns in the finals. He was the finals MVP for the third consecutive time thanks to a monster series where he became the first player to ever score 40 or more points in four straight games – with a remarkable 55 in game four. He became just the third player to drop 30 or more in every game of the finals and his average of 41 points per contest was the highest in Finals history. He would retire in the off season to have a failed crack at baseball, before returning, and leading the Bulls to another three peat. His final effort before retiring after the 1998 finals against the Utah Jazz would include a jump shot over his whipping boy Bryon Russell, giving the Bulls the win in game six that sealed the series. Jordan would win his third straight finals MVP award, giving him that title six times in his career, matching his NBA championships. MJ had 45 in that last game, giving him an average of 33.5 points per game for the series. MJ would come back again, with the Washington Wizards, but we prefer to remember him as the champion that he was. This is why every one wants to be like Mike.
