Top 5 unsung heroes of 2017

#3 Nathan Lyon

Nathan Lyon is perhaps one of the most underrated bowlers in the world at the moment. He goes about doing his job rather quietly. However, to everyone’s surprise, Lyon is currently the leading wicket-taker (60 wickets) in Tests in 2017.

Yes, he has played 6 out of 10 Tests this year in the subcontinent, but he’s bowled beautifully irrespective of the pitch and conditions. He started the year with a bang as he picked up a career-best of 8-50 in March (his third Test of the year) against India. He took 19 wickets in 4 Tests in India before churning out 22 wickets in just 2 Tests in Bangladesh.

And that’s not all! He has bowled beautifully in the ongoing Ashes series as well. He has taken 14 wickets in 3 games and the England batsmen have had little success in countering him.

With the spotlight often on the big quicks (Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins), Steve Smith and David Warner, the 30-year New South Wales spinner has quietly done a thankless job for the Aussies.