Glenn McGrath AM (b. 1970), philanthropist and former Test cricketer, is one of international cricket’s greatest ever fast bowlers. He made his debut for his home state New South Wales in 1992 and played his first Test against New Zealand the following year. In 1997 he took eight wickets for 38 runs against England at Lord's; he collected 32 wickets in the 2001 Ashes series and nineteen in the Ashes series of 2002–2003. McGrath achieved his best Test figures when he took eight for 24 against Pakistan in Perth in December 2004. The first Australian fast bowler to play 100 Tests, he remains one of only seven bowlers whose Test tally exceeds 500 wickets. The McGrath Foundation, established by Glenn and his late first wife Jane in 2005, has raised millions for the support and care of breast cancer patients.
Known for her distinctive 'pixellated' style, Sally Robinson's portrait of McGrath was the result of two formal sittings, supplemented by the use of an Australian Cricket Board press pass that enabled her to watch and photograph the cricketer in action at the Sydney Cricket Ground. The portrait 'features Glenn contemplating his next ball to a nervous English batsman,' Robinson says, 'with Shane Warne in the distance, fielding in the slips.'
Gift of the artist 2003
© Sally Robinson
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