‘Grateful’dale Steyn retires
DALE Steyn can now provide his full attention to fishing, surfing, walking the dogs and the odd bit of cooking.
Cricket is no longer a priority. His retirement from the sport, made via social media and using lyrics from his favourite band, Counting Crows, brings the curtain down on a career of one of the game’s greatest fast bowlers.
The numbers tell one story – his Test strike-rate of 42.3 is the best for anyone who has taken over 300 wickets – but there are several others about Steyn, who never took his talents for granted and was respected, admired and loved by teammates and rivals.
He had retired from the Test format in August 2019 but still held out hope of playing for the Proteas at the T20 World Cup. That tournament got pushed back a year because of Covid-19, with Steyn still availing himself for different T20 leagues while calling out the selectors for ignoring him.
Ultimately, though, they had moved on. And yesterday, so did Steyn.
“Today I officially retire from the game I love the most. Bittersweet, but grateful. Thank you to everyone from family to teammates, journalists to fans, it’s been a (sic) incredible journey together,” Steyn wrote in a post on social media.
“It’s been 20 years of training, matches, travel, wins, losses, strapped feet, jet lag, joy and brotherhood.
“There are too many memories to tell. Too many faces to thank.”
He played his last match for South Africa in a T20 international against Australia at the Wanderers in February last year, and his final match as a professional was for the
Quetta Gladiators against the Multan Sultans in the Pakistan Super League in March this year.
In 265 international matches, he claimed 699 wickets, and in all, he claimed 1 165 wickets in a career that took him from Islamabad to Melbourne, Kandy to Kingston, and several other places in between.
That everyone from young Australian Pat Cummins to his old rival and now friend James Anderson and the great Wasim Akram gave their praise yesterday reflects how Steyn transcended generations and countries.
In announcing his retirement, he used the lyrics of the Counting Crows ballad, A Long December.
“And it's been a long December and there's reason to believe
“Maybe this year will be better than the last
“I can't remember all the times I tried to tell my myself
“To hold on to these moments as they pass”