Nathan Lyon overwhelmed after attaining praise from Sachin Tendulkar

Australian spin wizard Nathan Lyon is taking a huge leap of success with every passing match. After taking six wickets in the 2nd innings of the first Test, the off-spinner backed it up with another five-wicket haul in the ongoing second Test. Former Indian great Sachin Tendulkar was one of them to bow down to Lyon and praised his consistency in red-ball cricket which left him humbled.

The 31-year old started the third day by plucking Rahane’s wicket. The final four out of the five wickets were also taken by Lyon, with his figures reading as 5-67 off 34 overs. This was the 14th five-wicket haul for him and seventh against India.

The New South Wales-born offie also equalled Muttiah Muralitharan’s record of taking five wickets or more in an innings against India. However, the veteran left behind the highest wicket-taker in terms of innings. While Lyon achieved it in 30 innings, the Sri Lankan achieved it in 32 innings.

Sachin Tendulkar’s praise for Nathan Lyon was second to none. The 45-year old addressed that Australia have found a very special spinner in him and said that he has got some unbelievably terrific variations and has extracted considerable value from a pitch that is suited to pace bowling but has an invariable bounce at times. The tweet from Tendulkar stacked up as:

Australia have got a very special spinner in @NathLyon421. He has got terrific variations and uses the pace and bounce from the pitch to extract maximum value. #INDvAUS

— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) December 16, 2018

The 81-Test veteran, while speaking to cricket.com.au, said, “That’s amazing to get something like that from Sachin Tendulkar. He’s obviously one of the greatest of all time to ever play the game. So, to get recognised from him it’s a massive honour.”

Lyon surpasses Donald in all-time wicket-takers list

Lyon, who now has 331 wickets from 81 Tests sits at No. 25 on all-time leading wicket-takers chart and left behind Proteas speedster Allan Donald on Sunday. Nevertheless, Lyon refuses to get carried away and believes that he still has a lot to offer and a lot of learnings still to gain in his career in order to keep getting better.

The off-spinner said in this aspect, “It’s a bit surreal. To pass the great ‘White Lightning” it’s pretty special. Those types of milestones for me personally haven’t really sunk in. I don’t think I’m at the top of my game yet. I think I’ve still got a lot of improvement, a lot of learning about the game and about off-spin bowling. I believe there’s a lot around the corner for me if I keep working hard and keep wanting to get better.”

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