It’s a good thing Nathan Lyon was prepared to wait.
He would have got it in England, if not for a calf injury at Lord’s. He nearly got in on day three, before Travis Head pinched the last wicket off him.
Even when the magic moment came, it took a DRS overturn to make it official. But it is now official — Faheem Ashraf, out LBW for Nathan Lyon’s 500th Test wicket.
Maybe the suspense made it sweeter. It wasn’t the biggest crowd Lyon had played in front of, but everyone present turned up specifically to witness this moment.
There was relief on Lyon’s face, pure joy on his teammates’. It might take some time for them all to fully grasp the weight of what he just accomplished.
The company that Lyon now keeps is significant. He is the third Australian to ever take 500 Test wickets, joining legends Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath, and the eighth cricketer full stop.
It’s a record that puts him in the absolute highest level of conversation. When you discuss the greatest Australian bowlers of all time, Nathan Lyon’s name has to come up. When you discuss the greatest spinners in cricket history, Nathan Lyon’s name has to come up.
It still can be a bit hard to get your head around. The days when Lyon was fighting to keep his place in the team don’t feel that long ago, and indeed it did take quite some time to get that selection heat off him.
Perhaps scarred by the revolving door of spinners that followed Warne, the early years of his career were tinged by an expectation of imminent failure. A wicket with your first ball in Test cricket sets a pretty high standard, and plenty doubted he could meet it.
Turns out he could, and he did. Time and time again.
The 2013/14 Ashes series felt like a turning point, when he first started mastering his ability to use the bounce of Australian pitches. Punters said he couldn’t bowl Australia to a victory in a fourth innings, until he did in the emotional Adelaide Test against India in 2014.
But even as his skills and wicket tally grew, Lyon was viewed as an ironic champion.
When his teammates first gave him the nickname GOAT, not long after he took his 142nd wicket to become Australia’s most prolific off-spinner, they did so with tongue in cheek.
Matthew Wade’s drawling refrain of “nice, Garry” from behind the stumps became an internet hit, and for a summer or two the meme overtook the cricketer.
Remember that Boxing Day when the crowd conspired to collectively bellow a “nice, Garry” after the third ball of Lyon’s first over? And he proceeded to take a wicket with that ball and send them all into delirium?
He was the cult hero of an Australian team that didn’t always resonate with the public. Fans grew to love the groundsman-come-good who was happy to laugh along with the joke, taking a bucketload of wickets in the process.
In the last few years, Lyon has started to get his proper appreciation. The man is a masterful spin bowler who has worked tirelessly to maximise every bit of his immense talent.
This year’s Ashes made crystal clear Lyon’s importance to the Australian side. He helped drag Australia over the line in the first two Tests, not just with the ball, and left a void that couldn’t be filled once injury ruled him out of the remaining three.
In one of the most successful bowling attacks Australia has ever seen, he might be the most important cog. Lyon is the fulcrum around which the tearaway quicks can operate with freedom.
Is Nathan Lyon the third-best Australian bowler of all time, behind only Warne and McGrath?
Maybe, maybe not. But under no circumstances can you rule him out of the debate. And that is a remarkable thing to be able to say.
Lyon claimed his moment on day four in Perth, but he just barely snuck it in. The quicks laid waste to a Pakistan side that had finally thrown in the towel on a precarious wicket.
There were signs an early finish was on the cards long before Pakistan had even begun its second innings, as the established Australian batters took blow after blow to the body and head.
The pitch had reached its tipping point and the ball was doing all sorts. Usman Khawaja and Mitch Marsh decided the risk was worth it as they had some free runs on offer. Pakistan’s top order wasn’t feeling quite so brave.
Mitchell Starc nicked off Abdullah Shafique in the first over and suddenly everyone started making plans for Monday.
All three of Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins bowled well enough to see off a far more experienced side on a much flatter pitch. On this Perth afternoon, Pakistan didn’t stand a chance.
It was a disappointing end for a team that had put up such a fight for the first three days of the Test. They hung on that cliff’s edge with every last fingernail they had, but once they finally slipped the fall was swift.
On the evidence of Perth there is much to work with for Pakistan, but a poor first session on day one meant they had to do far too much chasing for the rest of the match.
Lost in that analysis though is the fact Australia played exceptionally well throughout the Test, and with room for further improvement going forward.
When David Warner bats like that on day one and Cummins and Hazlewood bowl as well as they did, not many teams will be able to go with Australia.
Australia will turn up to the MCG on Boxing Day confident, 1-0 up and with the newest member of the 500 club in its ranks. Christmas will be sweet for the Aussies.