‘A little fairytale’ – Lyon overtakes McGrath in Test wicket-taker list

Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon has overtaken legendary compatriot Glenn McGrath to move sixth in the all-time list of Test wicket-takers.

Lyon, 38, needed two wickets at the start of the third Ashes Test in Adelaide to overhaul seamer McGrath’s tally of 563.

He moved level by having England’s Ollie Pope caught at mid-wicket with his third ball of the game, before claiming his 564th Test scalp by bowling Ben Duckett three balls later.

Lyon is now the second-highest Australian Test wicket-taker behind the late legendary leg-spinner Shane Warne, who took 708.

He is also the the highest active player in the rankings and fourth-highest spinner, behind former Sri Lanka off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan (800), Warne and ex-India leg-spinner Anil Kumble (619).

Retired England greats Sir James Anderson (third on 704) and Stuart Broad (fifth on 604) are the only two pace bowlers ahead of Lyon.

“What a bowler. Nathan Lyon deserves to get that,” said McGrath on BBC Test Match Special.

“You wondered what impact Nathan Lyon was going to have in this game. First over, and that was a gem of a ball [to remove Ben Duckett].

“He has been brilliant for Australia. He will go down as one of the greatest Australia spin bowlers behind Shane Warne.

Lyon returned to the Australia side for this game, having been left out for the day-night pink-ball Test in Brisbane.

It meant that Lyon, who said he felt “absolutely filthy” by the omission, had been left out of Australia’s side in two of their past three matches, and he only bowled two overs in the series opener in Perth too.

Speaking before the game, Lyon, who used to be a groundsman at the Adelaide Oval, said: “I daresay it would be like a little fairytale, I guess, with my history here.

“My first ever Test match here was on the roller here back in 2010 funnily enough against England. So for me to potentially overtake Glenn McGrath here would be pretty incredible.”

In the build-up to the game the South Australia Cricket Association unveiled a commemorative plaque of Lyon on their ‘Avenue of Honour’.

England have opted not to play a specialist spinner in the series so far, with all-rounder Will Jacks asked to combine his off-spin and batting in the past two Tests.

“You’re asking a spinner, but I think it’s incredibly important,” Lyon said when asked about the value of slow bowling in Test cricket.

“I think the variation in Test cricket, understanding that Test cricket goes for five days, and there’s a lot of opportunity for pitches to wear and spinners to be able to produce their craft.

“I’ve always said as soon as the ball spins, there’s more eyes on TVs. You look at when we go over to India, you look at the conditions there and the exciting cricket when the ball is spinning, how many people pay attention to it.