SA v ZIM 2018: Dale Steyn makes a stormy comeback with all-round show

Dale Steyn scored a career best 60 and picked two wickets.

Dale Steyn hit his maiden half century in the Bloemfontein ODI | AFP

Veteran South African pacer Dale Steyn made a fantastic comeback into the game, as he was adjudged with Player of the Match, but not for his bowling, for his brilliant efforts with the willow in Bloemfontein.

He scored entertaining 60 off 85 balls including 8 fours and 1 six to help Proteas to thrash Zimbabwe in the second One Day International on Wednesday (October 3) to win three-match series 2-0 in Bloemfontein with the final to be played on Saturday (October 6) at Boland Park.

It was Steyn’s maiden half-century in the White-ball game and the pace superhead was like "that wasn't me" when he was asked about his match-winning knock. Besides his laudable efforts with the bat, Dale was also very impressive with the ball picking up 2 wickets against Zimbabwe.

As per reports in Cricbuzz, Steyn said about his knock, “That wasn't me. I was discussing the lunch, and the next thing I knew, I was in to bat. It's nice [to win Player of the Match for batting]. When I started my career, I joked with the guys and said I could bat a little bit. It's taken me almost 14 years to score my ODI fifty. Maybe that's just because we've had a strong batting line-up.”

He further added, “In some ways, I'm disappointed that I couldn't have done that earlier in my career and I had to wait this long, but it's nice to score runs and contribute.”

Meanwhile, Steyn, who is glad to be back in the mix with the national set-up after the spate of injuries, credited County Cricket with Hampshire for getting 'cricket fit' fitness.

He noted, “In the county season you're always batting, but the thing is I've been playing cricket, which is nice. In the past, I've come into these series after a winter and haven't played a lot of cricket, and I feel my way into series. My last game was two weeks ago and I feel cricket fit.”

His fitness level can be estimated from his performance in Bloemfontein ODI, as the pacer was seen hitting speeds of nearly 145kmph, finished with figures of 2 for 19 from his six overs.

Steyn signed off by saying, “My fingers were freezing! I don't think I could feel the ball in the first over. There was a nice breeze behind me, so there was a little bit of pace. If you're going to hit the deck hard, something is going to happen all the time, and the Zimbabweans found it tough.”

(Inputs: Cricbuzz)

 
 

By Rashmi Nanda - 04 Oct, 2018

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