Dale Steyn praises Pakistan pacer Mohammad Abbas
Dale Steyn, South Africa's premier fast bowler has given his prediction as to who would be topping the ICC Test bowling charts very soon.
Mohammad Abbas, the 28-year-old right-hand fast arm bowler from Pakistan has been touted as the next big thing in Test Cricket by Dale Steyn. Abbas would be very proud of himself with this appreciation coming from one of the best fast bowlers that cricket has produced.
Having made his debut only last year, Mohammad Abbas was preferred ahead of bowling sensation Mohammed Amir for the series against Australia in Dubai. Despite being excellent players of fast bowlers, the Australian batsmen have struggled against Mohammed Abbas.
Abbas has picked an astonishing 49 wickets in just nine matches in his career so far. He has done that at an average of 16 runs only. This has drawn comparisons with players like Glenn McGrath and Mohammed Asif who have had similar starts to their career.
He picked up a five-wicket haul in the first innings of the second Test against Australia which prompted Dale Steyn to laud Abbas on social media. South African legend Ab de Villiers also agreed to Dale Steyn's tweet on the pacer's twitter account.
With the World Cup set to start next year, Pakistan would consider themselves lucky to have found this youngster. Pakistan's fast bowling contingent has been in bad form in recent times and their performance in the Australia series would be a morale booster.
On the other hand, Dale Steyn has made a comeback to South Africa's limited overs squad. He was responsible for the series win against Zimbabwe and was therefore awarded a spot in the squad for the upcoming tournament against Australia. A few good performances in this series could guarantee Steyn of a place in the World Cup squad which could be a fitting end to his highly illustrious career.