CAPE TOWN: On December 19, Dale Steyn responded to the news of his inclusion for South Africa’s Boxing Day Test against Zimbabwe with this tweet: “Time to dust off the old whites”. One of the most-celebrated and fearsome pacers of this era was coming back to Tests after spending almost a year-and-a-half battling various injuries. That Steyn even managed to pick up the ball and bowl was an achievement. If you think, “What’s the big deal about a pacer coming back from injury?”, then consider the following.
In 2015, when South Africa toured India, a groin injury saw Steyn play only one Test. For a bowler who has given many batsmen nightmares, little did he or anyone know that this was the start of one for him.
Soon after, he picked up a shoulder injury against England at home. With an Australia sojourn slated for late 2016, he rushed himself for the home series against New Zealand. Steyn had said that he wanted to go Down Under and end up on the winning side all the time.
In Perth, a steaming Steyn heard a crack while rolling his arm over; he had felt something pop in his right shoulder. An MRI scan revealed a broken bone, and a pin had to be inserted. Bowling was the last thing on his mind then, but that is what put him on his road to redemption. This was in November 2016.
The surgery that followed ruled Steyn out for six months. With Kagiso Rabada’s emergence, Steyn was almost forgotten. He even withdrew from the tour of England, citing lack of match practice. For every small step Steyn took in rehabilitation, he suffered new setbacks. His shoulder injury took six months to heal, and three more months elapsed before he could regain the strength to bowl. Pace, his primary weapon, was not even on the agenda. “Even if I bowl one between 145-150 kmph, it’ll be enough for the batsman to know that I have still got enough gas left in me. That is what matters,” he said then. His return to cricket was delayed further.
It was in this backdrop that Steyn was included for Zimbabwe. A viral infection would eventually rule him out of that too. A return to Cape Town, though, rejuvenated Steyn’s passion. It was the city he had migrated to for pursuing cricket, and he considered the crowd there as his.
While injuries are part and parcel of cricketers’ career, they are also a reflection of the workload of a modern pacer. Steyn is part of the era where playing all three formats was a norm. That he has stepped out to the field 27 times every year (till 2015) attests to that statement. Nearly half were in the five-day format. West Indies pace legend Michael Holding, a natural athlete himself, feels that Steyn’s injuries were catalysed by this. “It is purely down to the number of Tests he was made to play. Until 2000s, you played 6-8 Tests, but Steyn played a lot more. Even 10-12 with the limited overs. The body isn’t a machine. It will give up at some point in time.”
On Friday, he stood at fine-leg and warmed up when Vernon Philander began his run-up. The crowd roared as Steyn stretched his right arm, making even Murali Vijay turn around.
The return included a spell on the second morning where he showed his old self and picked up two wickets. But it only lasted 17.3 overs. An unfortunate foot injury had sidelined him for another four-to-six weeks. He struggled to even put weight on his feet. South Africa are trying to maintain his confidence, which he had regained over the last 12 months. At 34, if Steyn has enough fire to stage another comeback remains to be seen.