Almost six months ago to the day, half a world away in balmy Barbados, it was put to Nathan Lyon that he needed roughly 15 wickets to move past Glenn McGrath on the list of the most prolific wicket takers in Australian Test history.
โItโs 10,โ Lyon deadpanned.
In contrast to the standard insistence in professional sport that player X doesnโt play to accomplish milestone Y, Lyon is always refreshingly frank when it comes to talking about his place in the game.
Nathan Lyon celebrates with teammates including Marnus Labuschagne (No.33).Credit: Getty Images
Earlier this week, he could appreciate the fairytale unfolding before him after being recalled on the Adelaide Oval wicket he once diligently prepared. Back in the side after being omitted from two of Australiaโs past three Tests โ and bowling only two overs in the game he did play โ it was as if Lyon had never left.
Three balls into his first over, Ollie Pope obliged with a lazy clip to mid-wicket that could well cost him his place at No.3. Having started Australiaโs tour of the West Indies on 553 wickets, Popeโs scalp brought Lyon level with McGrath on 563 Test wickets.
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