Australian pace bowler Glenn McGrath became the most successful bowler in the history of the World Cup on Saturday when he claimed two wickets to surpass the mark of former Pakistan great Wasim Akram.

McGrath clean bowled Bangladesh opener Shahriar Nafees in his second over to draw level with Akram's milestone of 55 World Cup dismissals. In the next over, he overtook it as Aftab Ahmed lofted the ball to Nathan Bracken at mid-off.

Passing Wasim Akram's record was 'something pretty special,' Australia's Glenn McGrath said Saturday.
(Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images)

Playing in his last international event, McGrath, 37, reached the landmark of 56 wickets in his 33rd World Cup game. Akram had claimed 55 in 38 matches.

"When you're playing long enough you're going to get a record here or there, but Wasim Akram to me is one of the best bowlers of all time. To go past him is something pretty special," McGrath said after Australia restricted Bangladesh to 104-6 and scored 106-0 to win by 10 wickets in a super-8 match in St. John's, Antigua.

"They had to come out and score some quick runs. I just tried to mix it up, tried to get a few in the right area and it came out pretty well for me."

The two dismissals boosted his limited-overs tally to 366 dismissals in 244 games.

McGrath has already quit Test cricket with a haul of 563 wickets from 124 matches, making him the most successful pace bowler in the history of the game. Only spinners Shane Warne of Australia and Muttiah Muralitharan from Sri Lanka are ahead of him.

McGrath's consistent and match-winning bowling performances have helped Australia reach the final of the past three World Cups, including back-to-back title triumphs in 1999 and 2003.

Spearheading the attack yet again, McGrath features in Australia's quest for a first ever hat-trick of titles.

As he closed in on the record, McGrath sought to keep his cool, saying on the eve of this match that he counted himself lucky to have represented Australia for 14 years after making the Test debut against New Zealand in 1993.

Eleven years ago, McGrath went without success in the 1996 final at Lahore, Pakistan, that Sri Lanka won by seven wickets. Since then, he has made batsmen pay dearly for his missed opportunity.

McGrath and current captain Ricky Ponting are the two players in the current squad who have featured in the three previous World Cup finals.