Former Australian captains Steve Waugh and Mark Taylor will lead the teams in a celebrity Twenty20 cricket match to raise funds for the Victorian wildfire appeal, officials said Sunday. The official death toll in Australia's worst-ever wildfire disaster stands at 181, but police said they were expecting many more bodies to be recovered from the ashes.
The cricket match, which will be played at the Sydney Cricket Ground next Sunday, is also set to feature federal Environment Minister and former rock singer Peter Garrett, boxer Anthony Mundine and former Test stars Glenn McGrath and Michael Slater.
Cricket New South Wales chief executive David Gilbert said Waugh and Taylor immediately agreed to play when he approached them. "They said yes straight away," Gilbert said in a statement. "Once again, they are leading the way, just as they did in their playing days, and the response from players, past and present, plus the personalities has been fantastic." Waugh captained Australia in 57 Tests up to his retirement in 2004 and Taylor led his country in 50 Tests up to 1999.
Prominent National Rugby League players Braith Anasta and Anthony Minichiello and Wallabies Phil Waugh, Lote Tuqiri and the retired Matthew Burke will also feature, along with former world surfing champion Mick Fanning and current surfer Joel Parkinson, organisers said. Organisers said they hope the match will raise 500,000 dollars (330,000 US) for the Red Cross wildfire appeal.