Muttiah Muralitharan breaks Shane Warne's World Record

Sri Lanka's spin star Muttiah Muralitharan has broken Shane Warne's record to become the game's leading test wicket-taker. (03/12/2007) The spinner bowled England's Paul Collingwood in the first test in Kandy to claim his 709th test victim. 35-year-old Muralitharan, reached the milestone in his 116th test - 29 fewer than Warne - and has a measly average of 21.77 compared to the Australian's 25.41. He was four behind Warne before the series began, but took his fifth wicket of the match to claim the record. England kept Muralitharan at bay during his first spell of the third morning, but he struck immediately in his second, bowling Collingwood from around the wicket. It was in front of his home crowd and they went wild as firecrackers were set off to mark the moment of history. Muralitharan was hugged by his team-mates, with his proud wife and son watching from the stands. He had achieved this record at a time when Sri Lanka is completing 25 years after achieving test status. Meanwhile, President Rajapakse has extended his greetings to the spinner for his notable achievement. In a greetings message, the President said his victory has done Sri Lanka proud. The message further said that the entire nation is upbeat about his victory. Government has made arrangements to issue a special commemorative stamp for Muralitharan's record.