Today we choose our spell of the decade. Tell us yours in the comments below.

John Stern (Editor of TWC)

Shane Warne, 6-161, Australia v South Africa, Cape Town, 2001-02

Not so much one spell as five that amounted 70 sweaty, attritional overs – he likened the performance to a big night out when “you get your third and fourth wind”. In his 100^th Test, Warne was a shoo-in for the man-of-the-match award. He followed a 65-ball 63 with 6 for 161 in the second innings to give Australia an unassailable 2-0 lead against the next best side in the world.

Edward Craig (Deputy Editor)

Steve Harmison, 2-62, England v Australia, Edgbaston, 2005

It is not so much a spell as an over – the last one to Michael Clarke on the third day. All England fans remember the wicket, the slower ball that Clarke played all round, but you rarely get to see the set up: Harmison bowled the most hostile over of the decade, quick, at the throat, physically dangerous. The slower ball was the great final line – that’s all. His 7 for 12 at Jamaica wasn’t too bad either …

Daniel Brigham (Assistant editor)

Andrew Caddick, 5-14, England v West Indies, Headingley, 2000

England had struggled to gain a first-innings lead at Headingley before Darren Gough altered the complexion of the match by removing West Indies’ top four cheaply. The game was over by the time of Caddick’s spell, but his four wickets in an over was a great way to finish it. West Indies crashed to 61 all out and the Duncan Fletcher era was up and running.

Benj Moorehead (Editorial assistant)

Shane Warne, 4-41, Australia v England, Adelaide, 2006-07

Warne has always said being a legspinner is as much about creating illusions as skill. These qualities dovetailed perfectly on the last day at Adelaide in 2006-07. It was a spell in every sense of the word. England were persuaded they could lose when a draw seemed the worst possible outcome. Warne’s presence and wagging tongue made scoring runs seem quite impossible. He took 4-49 off 32 overs. In reality all 10 wickets were his. And this in a match in which England had taken 167 runs off his bowling in the first innings!

Sam Collins (Website editor)

Shoaib Akhtar, 5-21, Australia v Pakistan, Colombo, 2002

A reminder of what might have been. Quick, full and straight – Shoaib at his best was unplayable. In the scheme of things this spell was irrelevant – Australia won the match – but the way Shoaib detonated the Australian top-order in the second-innings was startling. Ricky Ponting and the Waugh twins all went in the space of four balls, while Adam Gilchrist got about the best yorker you could wish to see. Shane Warne was the fifth, not a bad set of names.

Tomorrow: Hero of the decade