Gilchrist is a dangerous foe (Allsport).

By Steve Whiting, PA International

Adam Gilchrist was 10 years old when his mother gave him a pair of wicketkeeper's gloves as a Christmas present - but the first time he wore them the ball popped up, hit him in the face and broke his nose.

Yet that was the moment when young Gilchrist knew he wanted to keep wicket for Australia - for hadn't the same thing happened to his childhood hero Rodney Marsh?

Marsh later told him the story about his nose job was not true, but by then the die had been cast and Gilchrist was well on his way.

Then, at 17, the choices confronting him were crucial. Blessed with a sharp academic brain - his father, a schoolteacher, bowled leg-spin for the New South Wales second XI - the youngster had to decide between a university place or a cricket scholarship to England.

Cricket won that time and has gone on winning ever since, with Gilchrist developing into the most accomplished wicketkeeper-batsman of the modern era.

He either goes in at number seven in Test matches to destroy attacks already decimated by Hayden, Ponting, Martyn and company, or sets the one-day innings in motion with a left-handed assault from which opponents usually cannot recover.

He did have to move from his native New South Wales to Western Australia to find a regular place in a state team. But his natural openness soon won him friends and admirers in Perth, even though he was replacing local idol Tim Zoehrer.

International recognition initially took some time to arrive thanks to longevity of his predecessor Ian Healy.

In Healy he had the toughest of acts to follow, but such has been the impact he has made since his Test debut in November 1999 the Queensland great was quickly consigned to history.

His glovework may not match that of Healy. Yet his explosive batting has not only more than compensated for any deficiency in that area but made him one of the game's most valuable commodities.

In just under three years of Test cricket, Gilchrist racked up 2,200 runs at an average of over 59 with a top score of 204 not out. His one-day international stats, which stretch back a further three years, may not have made quite such impressive reading. But with 4,500 runs, seven centuries and 200 catches behind him, there is still plenty to worry any opponent.

Those with the new ball simply have to get him out or face the consequences. Never will this be more crucial than in the World Cup. If Gilchrist is allowed to get set big totals are in the offing, and such is the brilliance of Australia that teams are unlikely to get a second chance from there.

Gilchrist is one of the outstanding cricketers of his generation. His arrival on the biggest stage may have been relatively recent; he is already, but there is likely to be plenty more to come yet.

Aside from his all-round ability, Gilchrist is one of his side's biggest thinkers and he has already had a brief shot at the captaincy in Steve Waugh's absence.

The appointment of Ricky Ponting as one-day captains suggests he may not be viewed as his long-term successor, but it certainly took him little time to establish himself as one of the Aussies' senior players.

Gilchrist has also always been one to speak his mind on and off the pitch - he actually writes his own newspaper column - but he backs his words up with actions.

He is one of the world's premier players, and the competition in South Africa have their work cut out to stop him and Australia.