The ‘phenomenal’ Cape Town test not only saw a number of records tumble, though none too be thrilled about, but also saw South African pace man Dale Steyn achieve the rare distinction of breaking the 900-point mark in the ICC Player Rankings for Test bowlers after claiming six scalps in his side’s eight-wicket win over Australia on Friday. He becomes only the 20th bowler in the history of Test cricket to do so and only the second South African after Shaun Pollock.
Dale Steyn achieves rare distinction
Steyn began the Cape Town test with 899 rating points and with respect to his bowling efforts of 4-55 and 2-23 against Australia, managed to break the 900 rating point-mark. At 902 rating points, he stands 17th in the all time list and a good performance in the second and third Tests against Australia will only see him moving forward in the rankings.
Along with debutant Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn helped South Africa script one of their most famous victories. The match will always be known for the stellar bowling performance of the South Africans which saw Australia crumble meekly for just 47 runs. Steyn had Shane Watson caught for 3 runs in the first innings and kept picking key wickets at regular intervals. The second innings saw him giving Philander able assistance as he started the downfall and wrapped up the innings with wickets of Shane Watson and Nathan Lyon.
Steyn has been instrumental in the South African side’s success over the last few years. With an athletic build and a perfect right arm action, he constantly bowls around the 145-150 kmh. He also has the distinction of being the No.1 ranked Test bowler since the Durban Test against England in 2009 and has held on to it ever since. In 47 tests, the speedster has taken 244 test wickets with 902 rating points.
James Anderson is a distant second to him in the rankings trailing by almost 91 rating points and fellow South African Morne Morkel is in the third position with 126 ratings behind Steyn. The two have been a formidable attacking duo posing serious problems to many classy batsmen around the world. In the ODI rankings, Steyn stands at seventh position and 16th position in T20 games which is only set to improve.
“When I go out and bowl I hardly ever think of the rankings, for me it is about representing my country and giving my best for the team so sometimes it means a lot to receive the recognition”, said Steyn. The 900-ratings club has many world-class bowlers in its ranks and Steyn’s feat will only give him more confidence in the matches to come.
Tags: Australia, Cricket, Dale Steyn, South Africa, Test Cricket, Test Match
