Who is the highest wicket-taker for SA vs Australia (Tests)?
What's the story
South African pacer Kagiso Rabada has been a major force against Australia in the ongoing ICC World Test Championship final at Lord's. He took five wickets for 51 runs in the first innings and followed it up with four more in the third. This nine-wicket match haul took his tally to 58 Test wickets vs Australia. Here we present SA's highest wicket-takers vs Australia in Tests.
#1
Dale Steyn - 70 wickets
SA's leading wicket-taker in Test matches, Dale Steyn tops this list as well. Having played 15 matches against the Aussies, the talismanic pacer claimed 70 wickets. His average of 27.47 is however significantly higher than his overall career average of 22.95, as per ESPNcricinfo. Steyn's tally includes two fifers and a 10-wicket match haul. His best innings figures read 5/67.
#2
Hugh Tayfield - 64 wickets
Former off-spinner Hugh Tayfield is the only other bowler ahead of Rabada on this list. Like Steyn, he also played 15 Tests against the Aussies and returned with 64 wickets at an average of 34.50. His tally of four fifers against Australia is the joint-most for a Proteas bowler (10WM: 1). Tayfield's best returns in an innings read 7/23.
#3
Kagiso Rabada - 58 wickets
Rabada ended with 9 wickets in the WTC final, having conceded 110 runs from 33.4 overs. Versus Australia, he has now raced to 58 wickets at 21.39 from 11 matches. The speedster owns the best strike rate (37.2) among SA bowlers with 50-plus wickets versus AUS. The 30-year-old has achieved four five-wicket hauls against the team (BBI: 6/54). He has also taken 10 wickets in a match once against Australia.
Other pacers
Rabada shares spot with Morkel and Ntini
With his brilliance in the WTC final, Rabada joined Morne Morkel and Makhaya Ntini as South Africa's joint-third-highest wicket-takers against the Kangaroos. The former took 58 wickets across 16 games at a higher average of 33.67 with the help of two fifers (BBI: 5/23 ). Ntini featured in 15 Tests against the Aussies and claimed 58 wickets at 34.74. He also took two five-wicket hauls besides a match 10-fer (BBI: 6/100).