Josh Hazlewood added another milestone to his illustrious career on Tuesday, surpassing Australian pace legend Brett Lee in the country’s list of leading Test wicket-takers. The right-arm quick achieved the feat with a career-best six-wicket haul against South Africa in the first Test at Kingsmead in Durban, helping Australia seal a commanding 214-run victory.
Hazlewood moves past Brett Lee in Australia’s record books
Hazlewood returned figures of 6/49 in South Africa’s second innings, taking his tally to 311 wickets in Test cricket. He claimed eight wickets across the match, having also picked up two in the first innings, moving past Lee’s career tally of 310.The achievement places Hazlewood sixth among Australia’s highest wicket-taking fast bowlers and eighth on the country’s overall Test wicket-takers list.Shane Warne remains Australia’s leading Test wicket-taker with 708 scalps, while Nathan Lyon occupies second place with 573 wickets. Hazlewood is now among the country’s most successful fast bowlers, with Mitchell Johnson next on the list at 313 wickets.During the match, Hazlewood also moved past several renowned bowlers in the all-time Test wicket-taking charts, including Kemar Roach, Fred Trueman, Lance Gibbs and Morne Morkel. He drew level with India’s Ishant Sharma and Zaheer Khan, who each claimed 311 Test wickets.
Hazlewood dismantles South Africa on Day 5
Hazlewood’s milestone came through a match-winning performance that crushed South Africa’s hopes of pulling off an improbable chase. Resuming the final day at 102/4, the hosts needed another 319 runs to reach their target but were eventually bowled out for 206.The Australian pacer broke South Africa’s resistance by dismissing Wiaan Mulder, who had battled for 29 runs off 109 deliveries. Hazlewood then removed Marco Jansen for 35 with a delivery that breached his defence before dismissing Simon Harmer in the same over.Mitchell Starc subsequently ended Aiden Markram’s determined innings of 75, while Hazlewood returned to claim the final wicket by dismissing Anrich Nortje. His six-wicket haul not only secured Australia’s 214-run victory but also delivered a career-best performance in the longest format.
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