Dale Steyn tips Kagiso Rabada to become South Africa’s all-time highest wicket-taker

Proteas legend Dale Steyn has tipped Kagiso Rabada to surpass his record.Photo : TANVIN TAMIM / AFP

Proteas legend Dale Steyn has tipped Kagiso Rabada to surpass his record.Photo : TANVIN TAMIM / AFP

Published Oct 25, 2024

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Proteas legend Dale Steyn has tipped Kagiso Rabada to surpass his record and become South Africa’s highest wicket-taker in Test cricket.

The 29-year-old Rabada made history as the fastest bowler to take 300 wickets in red-ball cricket during the first match against Bangladesh in Mirpur this week.

However, with South Africa playing fewer Test matches than ever, there is growing concern that the speedster may not even play enough matches to become South Africa's all-time leading wicket-taker.

Last year, Cricket South Africa sent a weakened team for their Test tour of New Zealand, prioritizing the SA20 competition over the longer format of the game.

— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) October 21, 2024

There is also concern about the increasing disparity in Test match scheduling, as the traditional big three—India, England, and Australia—play more matches compared to other countries.

However, despite all this Steyn who is currently the highest wicket-taker for South Africa with 439 wickets believes Rabada will go down in history as the country’s greatest test bowler.

Speaking to John Maytham on Cape Talk the legendary bowler praised Rabada and tipped to break his record.

“Whether KG will go on to be the highest wicket taker for South Africa, without a shadow of a doubt. I think he has barely just broken thirty in terms of age.

“So he will play until he is 38 similar age to what I was, Shaun (Pollock) was, Makhaya (Ntini) was when we all retired and even he gets to play 10 or 11 matches a year he will get to close 500 plus test wickets.

“He’s never going to rival Shane Warne and Jamie Anderson but he will definitely go down at the end of his career as probably South Africa’s greatest test bowler for sure,” Steyn said.

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