Tim Southee Becomes the First Fast Bowler to a Special Landmark

Three cricketers have made it to a hundred games each in all three formats. Tim Southee now joins David Warner, Ross Taylor, and Virat Kohli on the list. The significant aspect, though, is that he is the first fast bowler and could well be the last to get here.

His teammate, Kane Williamson, is getting to his 100th Test as well in the upcoming game. If Williamson, though, is the sponge of the side, Tim Southee will go down as an omnipresent member. Tim Southee displaying such levels of longevity is certainly an extraordinary feat for someone who generally minds his own business and stays away from doing the extraordinary.

While many talk about the longevity of James Anderson, Tim Southee, who is five years younger, has the potential to make it to similar discussions. He has played alongside Stephen Fleming, who started his career in 1994, and is around while Will O Rourke makes his Test debut. Starting with a Test five that contained the wickets of Michael Vaughan and Kevin Pieterson, Tim Southee has come a very long way.

His success at home, though, was followed by early challenges away. While Southee had some support in Australia when the ball swung he had his struggles on the flatter or bouncier tracks. Not the fastest, Tim Southee, along with Trent Boult went on for a long time asking batters simple but tricky questions.

Maintaining a nagging length while getting incredible swing is where the duo succeeded. Trent Boult unfortunately went on another past, leaving Tim Southee on his own with his journey to a hundred Tests. His success with swing, though, is not only within New Zealand and England. Tim Southee has had his success in India as well, with a seven-wicket haul at Bangalore.

He, along with his double act, Trent Boult, who is always mentioned with Southee, found ways to extract reverse swing as they grew in experience. Two days away from his 100th Test, though questions are being asked. With Southee only managing ten wickets in his last eight innings, the concerns are growing. For now, though, Tim Southee will go down as the first fast bowler to play a hundred games each across three formats.