It's Been A Joy To Watch You Bowl And Play Against You: Sachin Tendulkar To Dale Steyn

Former India batsman Sachin Tendulkar paid rich tribute to Dale Steyn after the latter announced his retirement from Tests. Steyn, on Monday, brought down curtains on his illustrious Test career. He, however, has vowed to continue playing for the Proteas in white-ball cricket. Dale Steyn retired from Tests as South Africa’s leading wicket-taker.

Steyn finishes his career with 439 scalps at an average of just 22.95. He picked up 26 five-wicket hauls, including game-changing spells on subcontinental wickets of Karachi, Nagpur and Galle. He also played a big role in South Africa’s historic Test series win in Australia in 2008-09.  Steyn was ranked the No. 1 Test bowler for a record 263 weeks between 2008 and 2014. He won the ICC’s Test Cricketer of the Year award in 2008 and was one of Wisden’s cricketers of the year in 2013.

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“Today I walk away from a format of the game I love so much,” Dale Steyn said in a statement issued by Cricket South Africa. “In my opinion Test cricket is the best version of this game. It tests you mentally, physically, emotionally.”

The last couple of years have been marred with injuries for Steyn. In December 2015, he injured his shoulder in the Durban Test versus England and was ruled out of the rest of the rubber. He injured his shoulder again during the Perth Test in 2016. Steyn returned for the Test series against India in 2018, but only to sustain a heel injury in Cape Town.

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And as Steyn retired from Tests,  tributes poured in from all quarters. Sachin Tendulkar also joined the bandwagon as he recalled his enthralling battles with the Proteas legend, tweeting:

“Wishing you all the very best for the future  @DaleSteyn62 . You always challenged batsmen to bring their A-game to the ground. It’s been a joy to watch you bowl and play against you.”

Wishing you all the very best for the future @DaleSteyn62. You always challenged batsmen to bring their A-game to the ground.
It’s been a joy to watch you bowl and play against you. pic.twitter.com/CndQbGsOU4

— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) August 6, 2019