Dale Steyn has undoubtedly been one of South Africa’s greatest match winners of all time. The fiery pacer has dominated batsmen in all parts of the globe with his sheer pace and accuracy. Steyn has found tremendous success everywhere- be it the flat decks of India, the seaming conditions of England and New Zealand, or the hard turfs in Australia.
When South Africa won their first ever test series against Australia way back in 2008/09, it was Steyn who led from the front with South Africa’s effort. Steyn had a memorable outing at Melbourne during that tour and was at his supreme best. 4 years later, South Africa once again defeated Australia in a test series, and it was yet again Steyn leading their charge at Perth.
On the sidelines of the IPL, Steyn spoke about his success Down Under and revealed his mantra. “Playing the best in the world brings the best out in your because you can’t be average,” said. “If you’re average you’re going to get beaten around the park and you’re going to lose badly.”
Steyn clearly stated that in order to succeed in Australia, one had to go out with a positive frame of mind. “You have to go there with a good attitude, you have to go there feeling like you’re going to win. “If you go there feeling like ‘oh we’re just here to compete’ you’re probably going to get a hiding, so you have to there with the right attitude.”
“I’m lucky enough to have played in a South African side that’s had some amazing competitors; when we first won there it was Jacques Kallis, Graeme Smith, Mark Boucher, Neil McKenzie. “These guys had been around the block, they’d been given a hiding many times before and they went there with a different attitude that time around in 2008-09, and some other players who had never been there before were up for it. “Then we went there again in 2012-13 and did it again,” said Steyn.