5 best off-spinners in cricket today

2. Nathan Lyon

Nathan Lyon is the most successful off-spinner for Australia in Test cricket

After exposing a dozen spinners to the demands of international cricket post the retirement of the great Shane Warne in 2007, Australia finally found someone to rely on after Nathan Lyon, a former groundsman at the Adelaide Oval, satisfied the selectors with impressive outings. He entered the scene with a debut five-for against Sri Lanka in 2011.

A bowler flighting the ball with liberty, Lyon also turns the red ball well to exploit the pitch and grab attention his way. In 2011, he bagged 7/88 against New Zealand at Brisbane, still an Australian record at the venue.

Not for nothing is Lyon his country’s most successful off-spinner – he eclipsed the gentle Hugh Trumble in 2015 – as with time, he has learnt to bamboozle batsmen with accuracy and consistency. As his career progressed, he faced criticism that he failed to read sub-continent pitches well and often failed to bowl Australia to victory on tracks tailor made for slow bowlers.

However, Lyon finally found success in India first on the 2013 tour, where he bagged 7/94 in Delhi, and then in 2017, when he snaffled twin five-wicket hauls, including a magnificent 8/50 on a first-day Bangalore track. A tally of 247 wickets at 33.39 after 67 Tests is leading Lyon in the right direction to becoming one of his country’s best spin bowlers, especially after Warne.