This is the second article in our series of articles and in this article we will talk Dale Steyn vs Jimmy Anderson and in my opinion these 2 are the Two best test match bowlers in the modern era as Dale Steyn could pick wickets in any condition and Jimmy Anderson holds the all time record. I am feeling honored that I am getting to write about these 3 legends and I hope to do justice in these articles.
Before I write this article, I want to say that the fast bowlers of today are not as good as they were during their prime and they made the batters work hard for their runs and so the tens of thousands of runs that the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara got has a lot more value today.
So, let’s write about the stats Comparison between Dale Steyn and Jimmy Anderson
Dale Steyn
Dale Steyn is my favorite fast bowler from the past 15 years as his action was so smooth and he was also the fastest bowler in the world as well as he got his line and lengths perfect and he got a lot of wickets in every country he went to play in. Dale Steyn is a hero for so many young fast bowlers not only in South Africa but across the world.
Test Cricket
Dale Steyn was the most successful in test cricket and he only played 93 Test Matches in his career just 7 short of 100 Test Matches. In the 93 matches he played he got a total of 439 test Wickets and he got them at an astounding average of 22.95 and he also got 26 Five wicket hauls in his test career. Dale Steyn troubled every batter that he bowled against . Dale Steyn could have got a lot more wickets had he stayed fit.
Also Read | Best bowling Performances of Dale Steyn in Test Cricket
ODI Cricket
Dale Steyn was also very successful in ODI Cricket as well . He played 125 ODIs and in those Matches he took 196 ODI wickets in his career but his ODI career was cut short by injury and he could not pick up many more wickets in his ODI career but in total he got 635 international Wickets for South Africa in his international career.
James Anderson
We talked about Jimmy Anderson in a previous article and we will talk about his greatness in this article as well because words will be less to describe what he has done in international career and he is still going even at 40 years old and he is an inspiration to all those players who think that they have to retire at a certain age.
Also Read | Best James Anderson bowling performances
Test Cricket
The most successful fast bowler in the history of test cricket so what do I say about him. Jimmy Anderson has played 175 Test Matches and has taken till now 667 Test Wickets which is more than 100 more than the next best and Jimmy Anderson is an institution in test match bowling and he looks like he will go on for a year or 2. He has also got 32 Five wicket hauls in test cricket.
Also Read | Best bowling Performances of James Anderson in Test Cricket
ODI Cricket
Jimmy Anderson was also a very good player of ODI cricket but it is just the fact that he is so much more successful in test cricket that his performances in this format get overlooked. He has played 194 ODIs for England and has got 269 ODI Wickets which is among the best for England. Jimmy Anderson could have taken 300 international wickets in his ODI career had he played more.
Stats Comparison
When we compare the 2 fast bowlers it will be important to note that Dale Steyn has got more wickets in away conditions as compared to Jimmy Anderson but still Jimmy Anderson has 238 more test Wickets than Dale Steyn so is ahead in test cricket. As far as ODIs are concerned it is a close contest but even here Jimmy Anderson has got almost 70 more Wickets so Jimmy Anderson is ahead here as well.
Also Read: Glenn McGrath vs Dale Steyn - Stats Comparison as Fast Bowler
