England's Stuart Broad proud to be in company of 'hero' Glenn McGrath

Stuart Broad said he was proud to have surpassed the Test-wicket tally of boyhood hero Glenn McGrath as England closed in on a series win over South Africa at The Oval. Broad captured the prize scalp of South Africa captain Dean Elgar for 36 on Sunday for his 564th Test wicket, topping long-retired Australia great McGrath's haul of 563. Elgar had been in good touch but the Proteas' most experienced batsman surprisingly decided against a review, even though replays showed the ball would have missed leg stump. South Africa had been 83-1 before Elgar's dismissal, which precipitated another batting collapse as they slumped to 169 all out in the deciding Test of a three-match contest. When bad light brought a premature halt to the fourth day, England were 97-0, needing just 33 more runs on Monday to reach a target of 130 that would secure a 2-1 series win.

Zak Crawley was 57 not at stumps, his first fifty in 17 Test innings, with Alex Lees unbeaten on 32. Broad is now among the top five in the all-time list of Test wicket-takers, with only England colleague and close friend James Anderson ahead of him among fast bowlers with 667 dismissals. But as Broad was the first to observe after equalling fellow seamer McGrath's mark, he is in his 159th Test compared to the Australian's total of 124 matches. "I saw Jimmy got his 564th on September 11 four years ago so that was quite funny," Broad told reporters after Sunday's close. "Glenn McGrath's a hero of mine and the reason I wanted to become a bowler, I used to imitate him in the garden. Obviously he's a much finer bowler than I've ever been but it's incredible to be up there in that sort of company."

Read AlsoZak Crawley, Alex Lees propel England towards victory in third Test