Sri Lanka's legendary spinner Muttiah Muralitharan expressed concern over the future of Test cricket, stating that he believes his record of taking 800 wickets in the longest format will remain unbeaten by any bowler. The 52-year-old cited the focus now leaning more towards shorter formats, which is one of the key reasons why his record will remain unchallenged indefinitely.

“I am worried about Test cricket. Every country will play maybe only six or seven Test matches. England and Australia might play in the Ashes. But in some other countries, not many people are watching. There will be very little Test cricket'', he told Daily Mail in an interaction.

The icon also mentioned that Test careers are now much shorter compared to the past, when players would participate in Test cricket for up to 20 years.

“It’s very hard (for someone to surpass 800 Test wickets) because emphasis has shifted to short-form cricket. Also, we played for 20 years. Careers are shorter now,” the 1996 ODI World Cup winner added.

He feels that although Sri Lanka came close to winning the third Test against England at The Oval, the visitors ultimately lost the series due to a lack of consistency required for success in the longer format.

“Consistency is the problem. It’s not about how good they are, because they all are talented. The only thing is how can they become experienced? Nowadays, it’s difficult. There are too many tournaments and things in their heads'', he said.

Following the Sri Lankan legend, the top off-spinners in Test cricket are Australia's Nathan Lyon with 530 wickets and India's Ravichandran Ashwin, who has taken 516 wickets.

Talking about his ODI performance, Murali took 534 wickets in 350 wickets, the most in the format with an economy of only 3.93 and best figures of 7/30.

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