South Africa vs Australia: WTC Final Showdown
South Africa is set to make history as they face Australia in the World Test Championship (WTC) final at Lord’s on Wednesday. Led by Temba Bavuma, South Africa is playing their first WTC final. Australia, the defending champions, won the 2023 final at the same venue by beating India by 207 runs.
Experience Gap
South Africa’s main challenge is their lack of experience. Kagiso Rabada and Bavuma are the most experienced players, with 70 and 50 Test caps respectively. On the other hand, Australia’s Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, and Josh Hazlewood have succeeded at this level before. They aim to add another victory to their careers.
Toss Report
South African captain Temba Bavuma won the toss and chose to bowl first. Both teams had already announced their playing XIs a day before the match.
Playing XIs
Australia
- Usman Khawaja
- Marnus Labuschagne
- Cameron Green
- Steve Smith
- Travis Head
- Beau Webster
- Alex Carey (wk)
- Pat Cummins (c)
- Mitchell Starc
- Nathan Lyon
- Josh Hazlewood
South Africa
- Aiden Markram
- Ryan Rickelton
- Wiaan Mulder
- Temba Bavuma (c)
- Tristan Stubbs
- David Bedingham
- Kyle Verreynne (wk)
- Marco Jansen
- Kagiso Rabada
- Keshav Maharaj
- Lungi Ngidi
Captains’ Thoughts Before the Final
Pat Cummins (Australia)
We are happy to bat first. The pitch looks good, though there are a few clouds. Our preparation has been excellent, with 15 players working hard for the title. We’ve had about 10 days of preparation and are ready. There doesn’t feel like any extra pressure. We’ve been here before and we’ve won it. This week is all about enjoying the moment.
Temba Bavuma (South Africa)
We will bowl first, considering the overhead conditions. The pitch looks good. It’s too late to change the team; we have selected the best combination. All 15 of us are confident. We all have had some connection to Lord’s; the emotion will hit us when the anthems start playing. It is a massive final.
Pitch Report
The weather looks overcast with a subtle breeze at Lord’s. The pitch looks good, especially for batters on Day 2. Bowlers will need to get their lines right for early movement to succeed.
