Australian veteran cricketer Nathan Lyon made a triumphant return to the Test team after recovering from a calf injury, participating in the first Test against Pakistan in Perth that began on Thursday, December 14. His presence marks a significant moment as he stands on the verge of achieving a monumental milestone of 500 Test wickets, with more than 495 wickets already to his illustrious career.
Nathan Lyon’s pursuit of 500 Test wickets
The seasoned off-spinner is on the brink of joining the elite club of bowlers with 500 Test wickets. As one of Australia’s mainstays in red-ball cricket, Lyon is not only their most successful Test off-spinner but is also set to become only the eighth bowler and the fourth spinner in history, following the footsteps of legends like Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne and Anil Kumble.
Also READ: Twitter reactions: Pakistan batters display resilience after Aamer Jamal’s bowling brilliance against Australia in Perth Test
Lyon’s future goals and retirement plans
Sharing insights into his future aspirations, Lyon conveyed that, before contemplating retirement, he has clear goals to achieve. Despite being 36 years old, Lyon has expressed a strong desire to continue representing Australia for as long as possible.
In a conversation with Cricket Australia, Lyon revealed his commitment to playing international cricket. He emphasized his confidence in fitness and stated that he refrains from attaching an end date or a specific wicket tally to his remaining career ambitions.
“I’m not putting a number on it. I want to play cricket for as long as I can. I haven’t won a Test series in India, haven’t won in England – those are two places that I want to do, so with the injury happening a couple of months ago, I feel like there’s a passion there to keep going and keep trying to get better. I’ve had the mentality to try and rehab this like no one’s rehabbed a calf injury before,” Lyon said.
