Steyn surpasses Pollock to become South Africa's top wicket-taker

Steyn surpasses Pollock to become South Africa's top wicket-taker

Dale Steyn, Shaun Pollock, Test record

Dale Steyn has become South Africa's leading wicket-taker in Test cricket, after claiming his 422nd wicket in Centurion. It took just 19 balls on the day for Steyn to reach the landmark, achieved when Fakhar Zaman prodded at one outside off, edging to Dean Elgar in the slips. The 35-year old fast bowler overtook Shaun Pollock, whose record of 421 wickets had stood for 10 years.

The crowd rose as one to give him a prolonged standing ovation, while his teammates hoisted him on his shoulders. Pollock, the man he overtook to become South Africa's most prolific wicket-taker, called him "an absolutely brilliant performer, an absolute champion and a true leader of the attack".

"The fact that he is the best Test fast bowler that SA has produced doesn't require my endorsement as his stats and record tell you that," Pollock said. "He's fully deserving of holding the record for most Test wickets and I hope that he goes on to take many more and continues winning games for the Proteas.

"I have enjoyed so many attributes of Dale's bowling through his international career. The ability to swing the ball at high-speed upfront, reverse swing the ball with devastating effect, bowl with great control and within himself as well as being able to crank it up with high-speed hostile bowling on very flat surfaces at times have all been his hallmarks."

Steyn made his comeback from a heel injury earlier this year, has battled shoulder and groin problems since 2015. He has only played seven Tests in the last two years but in an interview with ESPNcricinfo in June stated his intention to try to reach 100 caps. And on Monday, he insisted he felt like a 23-year old and was hoping to go on playing for a long time yet, warning he hadn't just saved himself up to take one more wicket.

Graeme Smith, under whom Steyn made his debut in 2004, called it a "goosebump moment", adding he was "lost for words". In the years since, he established a reputation as one of the fastest and most lethal fast bowlers in the game's history, his record bolstered by a virtually injury-free run until the "broken arm" he sustained nearly three years ago. He reached 400 wickets against Bangladesh in 2015 but has since played only a handful of matches, leading to the extended wait to become South Africa's leading wicket-taker.