In cricket, it is a common tradition for bowlers to keep the ball they use to achieve significant milestones. However, Australian off-spinner Nathan Lyon disclosed that he was not allowed to keep the ball from his 300th Test wicket.
That milestone came during the infamous Cape Town Test of the 2018 Australia-South Africa series, a match tainted by the ball-tampering scandal involving Steve Smith, David Warner, and Cameron Bancroft, which led to suspensions for the players.
Although the ball-tampering incident occurred in the 43rd over of South Africa’s second innings, Lyon claimed his 300th wicket with the second new ball, dismissing Kagiso Rabada by stumping.
In a recent interview with the *Daily Telegraph*, Lyon reminisced about the moment he reached his milestone and shared how he subsequently inquired with match referee David Boon about the ball.
“(Kagiso) Rabada stumped was my 300th wicket. It was at the Cape Town Test. I haven’t seen that ball since, unfortunately. Yeah, I think with everything that happened that game, they took it to have a look at it all,” he said.
“It was actually David Boon. I bumped into him on the balcony of the team hotel in the Covid summer of 2020-21 and being an ICC match referee he reached out to them (the ICC) through his work and tried to find it, and apparently it’s gone missing. Don’t know where it is. There’s been no more correspondence. It is what it is,” Lyon added.
Despite Lyon’s remarkable achievement, the Cape Town Test is remembered as one of the darkest chapters in Australian cricket history. The team also faced a crushing 322-run defeat, putting them 1-2 behind in the four-match series.
“As of now, it’s just a blank space”- Nathan Lyon
Nathan Lyon spoke about his wife’s impressive artwork, which showcases all his milestone balls and achievements on a wall at home, noting that the spot for his 300th wicket still remains vacant. The 36-year-old ranks eighth on the all-time list for Test wickets, having taken 530 wickets, including 24 five-wicket hauls, in 129 matches.
“My wife has done an amazing piece of artwork where she’s put all the milestone balls or achievements on a wall at home which looked pretty special. To see the success I’ve been able to have and understand that all the hard work can pay off. I’ve collected from the start,” said Lyon.
“It goes back a long way but it’s something I’m proud about and now my girls are starting to get old enough to ask questions about what’s this and what’s that. I am grateful for that but at the end of the day I guess I can just throw a ball in there and say it’s the 300th and no one will know, will they? (At the moment) it’s just a blank space,” he added.
Lyon is currently third on the all-time list for Australian bowlers, just 33 wickets shy of Glenn McGrath’s record of 563. He will next take the field when Australia faces India in a thrilling five-Test home series, beginning on November 22.
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