Du Plessis says 'Pak-born' Tahir 'as important to Proteas squad as Steyn'

South African Twenty20 captain Faf du Plessis has hailed his teammate Imran Tahir, saying that the spinner is as crucial to the team's bowling attack as pace sensation Dale Steyn.

Pakistan-born Tahir has enjoyed a far more successful limited-overs career with South Africa than in Test cricket, taking seven wickets in his six T20s at an economy rate of 5.19 since his debut a little over seven months ago.

According to Sport24, ahead of South Africa's clash against Australia in Durban on Wednesday, Du Plessis said that Tahir is very important to the team as he is as big a strike bowler as Steyn to the team, which faced a washed-out opening match in Port Elizabeth.

Stating that the success of Imran Tahir in the T20 World Cup is going to determine how well they do, Du Plessis also said that Tahir plays well in sub-continent conditions and can be a game changer, adding that the spinner is a wicket-taker and never keeps down the run-rate.

Tahir's ODI statistics are just as impressive with 26 wickets in 13 games.

The three-match series moves to Centurion after Wednesday's game, before South Africa head to the global spectacle where they are scheduled to open their account against in Chittagong on March 22, the report added.