Rabada reaches 350 Test wickets in record 13,808 deliveries

Kagiso Rabada reached 350 wickets in Test cricket on Saturday, 31 October 2026, using fewer deliveries than any previous bowler to reach that total. The South African achieved the milestone against Australia at Newlands in Cape Town. Reuters’ report, published by Rediff, and TimesLIVE give the record figure as 13,808 balls bowled.

The comparison matters: this is a record based on deliveries, not the fewest matches played or the physical speed of a single ball. Dale Steyn had reached 350 wickets after 14,719 deliveries. Rabada therefore needed 911 fewer balls. A wicket in this context is the dismissal credited to a bowler, not simply the wooden stumps on the pitch.

The International Cricket Council confirmed that Travis Head became Rabada’s 350th Test dismissal, caught by Marco Jansen. Earlier in the same innings, Rabada had removed Matt Renshaw and Marnus Labuschagne in his first over. The three early wickets put South Africa in a strong position while Australia were pursuing a target of 288 runs.

The hosts completed the job, dismissing Australia for 111 and winning by 176 runs. Simon Harmer took six wickets while conceding 16 runs in that innings; Rabada took three for 39. Those figures describe separate bowlers’ contributions to the same team result. The victory gave South Africa the three-match series by two wins to one.

The ICC also confirmed that South Africa moved above Australia to first place in its men’s Test team rankings after the result. That ranking is distinct from the World Test Championship standings. Winning this series did not itself award the next championship title, and the personal deliveries record should not be mistaken for a separate team trophy.

For followers of African sporting excellence, the achievement combines an individual milestone with a completed team victory. Its value is clearer when the measurement is kept precise: 350 Test wickets reached in 13,808 deliveries. Rabada’s success belongs to the record of Test cricket, while South Africa’s 2–1 win records the outcome of this particular series against Australia.