Kagiso Rabada took his 300th test wicket for South Africa against Bangladesh. He is closing in on Morne Morkel’s 309 wickets and proving that he deserves more credit than he gets.
When Stadium Talk released a list of the 50 greatest cricket bowlers of all time in 2022, Kagiso Rabada was left off the list. However, as his wickets continue to pile up, it is becoming increasingly difficult to overlook him when the all-time greats are discussed. Rabada hit the 300 mark in the Bangladesh v South Africa first test.
Where Does Rabada Sit on the All-Time Proteas Wicket List?
The only five South African bowlers in history with more test wickets than him are Dale Steyn (439), Shaun Pollock (421), Makhaya Ntini (390), Allan Donald (330) and Morne Morkel (309). Rabada has 302 at the time of writing.
All five of the Proteas in history with more test wickets than Rabada were ranked inside the top 50 on Stadium Talk’s list. Donald was seventh, Pollock 16th, Steyn 18th, Ntini 33rd and Morkel 36th. The only other South African in the top 50 was Vernon Philander (48th), who picked up 224 test wickets.
Getting to the Top Quickly
Philander played 64 tests, while Rabada is currently playing his 65th. This gives some context on how rapidly Rabada has stacked up wickets throughout his Proteas career.
Rabada picked up his 300 wickets in 11,817 balls – quicker than any other player in the history of test cricket. The closest to that record, Waqar Younis (Pakistan), took 785 balls more to join the 300 club.
The only criticism one could have of Rabada in relation to his peers at the top of test cricket history is that his economy of 3.36 could be more efficient. However, in terms of getting wickets quickly, there are few bowlers who can come close to matching him.
To date, Rabada has not received the same level of praise that the likes of Pollock, Steyn, Donald and even Ntini have. However, when all is said and done, he will go down as one of the all-time greats, just as they did.
