Brisbane: Australian Test captain Steve Waugh has told national selectors he wants to play in next month's series against the West Indies. Waugh, 37, said he would have cheated himself if he didn't continue his pinnacle Test cricket career in the Caribbean next month. Waugh on Saturday ended months of speculation by making himself available for the four-Test series against the West Indies, ignoring the chance for a perfect farewell following his memorable century against England in Sydney in January. "I thought about that -- the perfect way to go out -- but I don't see why there can't be another good finish somewhere down the track," Waugh said on Saturday. "I feel as if I'm playing really well and, if I retired now, I think I would be selling myself short. "The motivation was I feel as if I'm playing excellent cricket, I'm batting well and I want to score some more runs. "The last 24-48 hours I've weighed up the pros and cons and there were more positives than negatives and I decided I really wanted to continue." Waugh will reassess his future after the Caribbean tour, with selectors certain to name him as captain when they choose the 15-man squad late Sunday. When Waugh leads Australia out for the first Test in Guyana on April 10, he will become the most capped player in world cricket with 157 Tests, surpassing compatriot Allan Border. But he denied the chance to break Border's 156-Test record, or the opportunity to push towards Australia's series victory in India next year, contributed to his decision. "I'm not too concerned about those records anymore. If you play for long enough you're going to get records and that didn't motivate me to continue on," Waugh said. "It was a family decision, it wasn't something I've done by myself. "I didn't ask anyone else. There was no point in asking anyone else. It's got to come from within. "I'm just hoping to be picked to start with." Waugh has been in excellent touch this year, following his century against England with another three hundreds for New South Wales. He added an unbeaten 47 on Saturday as NSW took control of the Sheffield Shield final against Queensland after two days at the Gabba. Chairman of selectors Trevor Hohns would not give any indication whether Waugh would be an automatic selection, nor would he discuss whether selectors would have tried to talk the captain out of retirement if that had been his wish. Waugh left his announcement until the last minute but said he was comfortable with his decision. "I thought long and hard about it but I didn't really think about it until a couple of days ago," Waugh said. "I wanted to concentrate fully on NSW cricket but I had a deadline coming up and I had to make a decision. "The last 12 months have been difficult. It's probably the first time in a long time I've struggled to make runs and playing away from home, there's a lot less pressure on you as a player. "(The Caribbean) is probably my favourite place in the world to play. "It was my first tour there as captain four years ago and we drew that series so there was something to achieve there, a challenge, and I think you need those in cricket."
Copyright AFP 2001 Extras:Stephen Waugh in no mood to bid farewell
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