Dale Willem Steyn was on born 27 June 1983. He is a South African cricketer who currently represents the South African Cricket Team. He is widely considered as one of the all-time great fast bowlers and the best Test bowler of his generation.
Steyn took 78 wickets at an average of 16.24 during the 2007–08 season, earning him the ICC 2008 Test Cricketer of the Year Award. In the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack of 2014, he was named one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 2013, and Wisden Leading Cricketer in the World for the year 2013.
At the end of the decade, he was featured in Wisden Cricketers of the Decade. At the end of the decade, he was also named to the ICC Test Team of the Decade.
During the zenith of his career, Steyn held the number one slot in the ICC Test rankings for a record 263 weeks, from 2008 to 2014. Muttiah Muralitharan of Sri Lanka is next on the list, with 214 weeks.
As of October 6, 2016, Steyn had spent 2,356 days at the top, the most by any bowler since World War II. Former South African test cricketer Allan Donald dubbed Steyn’s pace attack, which included Vernon Philander and Morne Morkel, “the best South Africa has ever produced” in October 2012.
Steyn overtook all-rounder and former captain Shaun Pollock as South Africa’s top wicket-taker in Test cricket in December 2018, during the first Test against Pakistan. Steyn announced his retirement from Test cricket on August 5, 2019, to focus on limited-overs cricket.
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Dale Willem Steyn – Domestic Career and Early Life
Steyn was born in the small hamlet of Phalaborwa, on the outskirts of South Africa’s Kruger National Park, in 1983. His ancestors are from Zimbabwe. On October 17, 2003, Steyn made his first-class debut for Northerns (which later amalgamated with Easterns to form the Titans).
In his debut season, he only played two first-class games and had little impact, but a string of excellent performances in the early half of the 2004/2005 season earned him a spot in the Test team to face England. After failing to impress in his first three Tests, he returned to the Titans.
In 2005, Steyn moved to England to play for Essex, where he appeared in seven games between May and June. In his first County Championship appearance, he took 14 wickets at 59.85, although he failed to make an impression.
After working with world-renowned bowling coach Ian Pont Steyn at Essex, Steyn returned to domestic cricket in South Africa, where he bowled well for the Titans during the 2005/2006 season, earning him a recall to the Test side to face New Zealand.
Steyn took advantage of the opportunity to cement his place in the South African Test team, and as a result of his regular selection for the national team, he has played very little domestic cricket in South Africa over the last three seasons, appearing in only three SuperSport Series matches for the Titans.
In the first half of the 2007 English season, he returned to England to play for Warwickshire. This time, he was more successful, taking 23 County Championship wickets at an average of 25.86 in seven matches.
He also performed admirably in the Friends Provident Trophy, a 50-over event, finishing as Warwickshire’s highest wicket-taker. Since then, he has been a regular member of the South African One-Day International team.
Dale Willem Steyn – Franchise Cricket
In 2008, Steyn signed a contract with the Royal Challengers Bangalore to play in the Indian Premier League. For his participation in the tournament, he received US$325,000. He spent his first three seasons in the Indian Premier League with Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Deccan Chargers bought him for $1.2 million for the 2011 IPL season. After Deccan Chargers were kicked out of the IPL, he was picked by Sunrisers Hyderabad, where he played three seasons.
He was purchased by Gujarat Lions for $22.3 million in the 2016 IPL auction. He was released by Gujarat Lions before the 2017 IPL season, and he went unsold in the 2018 and 2019 IPL auctions.
In mid-April 2019, Steyn joined Royal Challengers Bangalore for the 2019 IPL season as a replacement for Nathan Coulter-Nile, who was injured.
He was purchased by the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2020 IPL auction ahead of the 2020 Indian Premier League. He appeared in three matches in the tournament, taking one wicket at an average of 133 and an economy rate of 11.40. He was released from the squad after the season.
In September 2019, he was named to the Cape Town Blitz squad for the 2019 Mzansi Super League tournament. In October 2019, he signed with the Melbourne Stars to play in the Big Bash League.
In December 2019, he was drafted as the first pick in the Platinum Category by Pakistan Super League franchise Islamabad United. Steyn joined Kandy Tuskers for the 2020 Lanka Premier League in November 2020. In the 2021 PSL Draft, Quetta Gladiators selected him in the Supplementary category.
Dale Willem Steyn – Playing style
Steyn is a hard-hitting all-around fast bowler who can reach speeds of over 150 km/h (97.3 mph) while bowling for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2010 Indian Premier League.
He can generate a lot of swings and is frequently chosen to bowl with the new ball to make the most of these abilities. He normally bowls at a speed of 140 to 150 km/h.
In a Test match against India in Nagpur in 2010, he exhibited his ability to reverse swing the older ball, which South Africa won by an innings and six runs. Steyn is a fiercely competitive cricketer who frequently celebrates his wickets with vigor.
He has remarked that he “loves the rush of bowling quickly” and that he “wishes to be the world’s fastest.” When batting, Steyn is usually seen as a tail-ender and bats at number nine. He is, however, a capable batsman who can also occupy the crease if necessary.
Dale Willem Steyn – Honours
- ICC Test Player of the Year in 2008
2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2016 – ICC Test Team of the Year - ICC One-Day International Team of the Year: 2011, 2014
- ICC Test Team of the Decade 2011–2020
- 2008- South African Cricketer of the Year
- 2014 Wisden Cricketer of the Year.
- Wisden Cricketer of the Year: 2013
Dale Willem Steyn is a South African cricketer who currently represents the South African Cricket Team. He is widely considered as one of the all-time great fast bowlers and the best Test bowler of his generation.
Steyn is a hard-hitting all-around fast bowler who can reach speeds of over 150 km/h (97.3 mph) while bowling for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2010 Indian Premier League.
Steyn had previously stated that he would not be available for the IPL 2021 season. He was a member of the Royal Challengers Bangalore squad for the IPL 2020 season, but he was released before the February player auction by the team.
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