Cricket: Warne claims his 300th Test wicket

South Africa 287 and 113 Australia 421 Australia win by an innings and 21 runs

Shane Warne became the 13th bowler to claim 300 Test wickets when he bowled Australia to an innings victory over South Africa in the second Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground yesterday.

"I set myself a goal before the start of the series," Warne said. "300 was the mark. To get there I had to bowl well and it will also help us to win the two series this season."

The leg-spinner took 6 for 34 for match figures of 11 for 109 as South Africa were bowled out for 113 in their second innings, falling 21 runs short of making Australia bat again. After rain interruptions, Paul Reiffel had Allan Donald caught behind more than an hour after the scheduled end to the day's play to complete the victory under lights.

Warne claimed his prized wicket when a leg-break beat the defence of Jacques Kallis to hit the off stump. It completed Warne's 14th five-wicket haul in an innings and his fourth 10-wicket match since his debut against India in Sydney six years ago.

After the new-ball pair of Reiffel and Glenn McGrath had claimed the two openers, Warne claimed his victims with his stock delivery - the leg break.

The turning point of the South African innings came two overs before lunch when he had Hansie Cronje caught at short leg off a tentative prod, similar to his dismissal in the first innings in Melbourne. However, in the second innings there he shared a match saving 123-run stand with Kallis and, in the first innings here, Cronje had held the innings together with a watchful 88.

From 21 for 3 at lunch Warne struck at regular intervals. In a 23-ball spell after the break, he took 4 for 7 as South Africa slumped to 55 for 7. Kallis resisted stubbornly for 155 minutes for his 45 runs and delayed the inevitable with Pat Symcox, who used the long handle to score 38 in a 41-run eighth-wicket stand. Reiffel took the last two wickets to finish with 3 for 13 in 12 overs.

Earlier, Australia tilted the balance of the match thanks to Ian Healy and the last batsman, Glenn McGrath, after Mark Taylor decided to bat on from a overnight 392 for 9. The pair frustrated the South Africans for a further 44 minutes, forcing them to take the third new ball, and put on 36 runs for the last wicket. McGrath followed up his 18 in the second innings in Melbourne with 14 before Donald had him caught behind.

South Africa won toss

SOUTH AFRICA - First Innings 287 (W J Cronje 88, H H Gibbs 54; S K Warne 5-75)

AUSTRALIA - First Innings

(Overnight: 392-9)

I A Healy not out 46

G D McGrath c Richardson b Donald 14

Extras (b1 lb12 nb6) 19

Total 421

Fall: 1-35 2-59 3-103 4-219 5-317 6-337 7-354 8-357 9-385.

Bowling: Donald 30.4-5-81-3, Pollock 33-8-71-3 (nb-5), Symcox 39-11-103- 2, Adams 38-9-66-1, McMillan 18-5-55-1, Kallis 8-1-30-0 (nb-1), Cronje 1-0-2-0

SOUTH AFRICA - Second Innings

G Kirsten lbw b McGrath 0

A M Bacher c Ponting b Reiffel 2

J H Kallis b Warne 45

*W J Cronje c Ponting b Warne 5

H HGibbs c Blewett b Warne 1

B M McMillan b Warne 11

S M Pollock c Taylor b Warne 4

D J Richardson c and b Warne 0

P L Symcox b Reiffel 38

A A Donald c Richardson b Reiffel 2

P R Adams not out 1

Extras (b-2 lb-1 nb-1) 4

Total 113

Fall: 1-1 2-3 3-21 4-27 5-41 6-55 7-55 8-96 9-112

Bowling: Reiffel 12-3-14-3, McGrath 5-2-8-1, Warne 21-9-34-6 (nb-1), Blewett 2-1-1-0, Bevan 3-0-18-0, M.Waugh 10-2-35-0.

Umpires: D B Hair (Aus) and P Willey (Eng).

First Test (Melbourne): Match drawn.

Third Test (Adelaide): 30 Jan-3 Feb.

THE 300 CLUB

Wkts Player Tests Ave

434 Kapil Dev (Ind) 131 29.64

431 Richard Hadlee (NZ) 86 22.29

383 Ian Botham (Eng) 102 28.40

376 Malcolm Marshall (WI) 81 20.94

362 Imran Khan (Pak) 88 22.81

355 Dennis Lillee (Aus) 70 23.92

353 Courtney Walsh(WI) 96 25.80

334 Wasim Akram (Pak) 77 22.30

325 Bob Willis (Eng) 90 25.20

309 Lance Gibbs (WI) 79 29.09

309 Curtly Ambrose (WI) 74 21.08

307 Fred Trueman (Eng) 67 21.57

300 Shane Warne (Aus) 63 23.50