Dale Steyn puts GT pacer in same ‘massive wicket-taking mentality’ category as Bumrah: ‘Those guys are like gold’

Legendary South Africa pacer Dale Steyn feels that it is important to produce bowlers with a massive wicket-taking mentality in T20 cricket.

The T20 has evolved with time as the batters have taken it to the next level with their ultra-attacking approach as 200-plus scores have become a new normal. However, there are still few bowlers in the world who can change the momentum of the game on their own, and Steyn named a couple of them – Jasprit Bumrah and Kagiso Rabada.

Bumrah has repeatedly rescued India from crunch situations across formats, during the T20 World Cup 2024, he proved himself the best in the business by helping Men in Blue clinch the title after 17 years. Steyn has put Rabada in the same category as Bumrah and said they have a massive wicket-taking mentality.

“The game has changed a lot, honestly, with T20 cricket. And what I mean by that is the way batters approach the game these days. So when I’m looking for bowlers, especially in the (T20) leagues where I do a little bit of coaching, I’m looking for the guys that have got the ability to take wickets – massive wicket-taking mentality. You look at guys like Jasprit Bumrah, he’s probably the all-in-all package, him and KG Rabada,” Steyn told The Cricket Monthly.

Rabada will play for Gujarat Titans in the upcoming season of Indian Premier League, while Bumrah is all set to miss the initial matches for Mumbai Indians as he is still recovering from back injury.

‘It’s not just about bowling 155kph…’: Steyn

Steyn discussed the importance of having bowlers like Bumrah and Rabada and suggested that bowling 155kph is not necessary to make a big impact in the game.

They’ve got the ability to come and bowl at any particular time in a game and take a wicket. Those guys are like gold. So if you can produce more bowlers like that, we’ll start to see our fast-bowling stock get so much better. It’s not just about bowling 155kph these days or having tens of different types of skills, it’s really about being able to break the game open when your captain needs it,” Steyn added.