It is the mega final of the 2023-2025 World Test Championship (WTC) and it will feature defending champions Australia and South Africa at the iconic Lord바카라™s cricket ground from the 11th to the 15th of June. Australia are the number one ranked ICC Test team in the world and will start as hot favourites in the ultimate battle for Test supremacy at the Mecca of cricket. South Africa are ranked number 3 and would need to counter-attack and surprise Australia if they are to have any chance against the Pat Cummins-led unit.
While Australia defeated India by 209 runs in the final of the 2021-2023 WTC at The Oval, it will be the first appearance in the summit clash for South Africa who had finished third in the previous cycle.
Path To The Final
Australia
Australia have won 13 of their 19 Tests in the 2023-2025 WTC cycle and start overwhelming favourites in the final. Despite some hiccups, they have dominated the format in the last couple of years and have not lost any of the six Test series in this time frame. They started with a 2-2 draw in England in the Ashes before routing Pakistan 3-0 at home. A shocker of a defeat against West Indies at their bastion Gabba was a wake-up call for the Pat Cummins-led unit and since then they have raised their game by a notch or two and comprehensively beaten all their opponents, including a 2-0 sweep in New Zealand, a massive 3-1 victory against India at home and a significant 2-0 win in Sri Lanka.
South Africa
South Africa started their campaign with a 1-1 draw at home against India before going down to New Zealand (0-2) away. They then bounced back in fine style, winning their next four series, which included away wins against West Indies and Bangladesh and victories against Sri Lanka and Pakistan at home. Overall, South Africa have won 8 of their 12 Tests in this WTC cycle and while some critics might question the quality of their opposition (they haven바카라™t faced Australia and England in this WTC cycle), the structure and scheduling of the fixtures and the debate over the points system of the Championship is the domain of the ICC.
Head to Head & Record at Lord바카라™s
Australia and South Africa have clashed with one another in 10 Tests since 2015, with the latter winning five of these encounters. Australia has won four, while one Test ended in a draw. While South Africa won the series 2-1 Down Under in 2016, they trounced Australia 3-1 at home in 2018. Australia emerged victorious in the last series at home in 2022, clinching a 2-0 win.
Both teams have a fine record at Lord바카라™s 바카라“ while South Africa has won 3 of the 5 Tests they have played at the venue since the 1st of January, 2000, Australia has come out triumphant in 5 of their 8 matches at the home of cricket in this period.
Probable Playing XIs
Australia: 1.Usman Khawaja, 2. Marnus Labuschagne, 3. Cameron Green, 4. Steve Smith, 5. Travis Head, 6. Beau Webster, 7. Alex Carey, 8. Pat Cummins, 9. Mitchell Starc, 10. Nathan Lyon, 11. Josh Hazlewood
South Africa: 1. Ryan Rickelton, 2. Aiden Markram, 3. Temba Bavuma, 4.David Bedingham, 5. Tristan Stubbs, 6. Kyle Verreynne, 7. Wiaan Mulder, 8. Marco Jansen, 9. Kagiso Rabada, 10. Lungi Ngidi, 11. Keshav Maharaj
Players To Watch Out For
Usman Khawaja (Australia)
Usman Khawaja is the highest run-getter for Australia in the 2023-2025 WTC cycle with an aggregate of 1422 runs in 19 Tests at an average of 41.82. His exploits include two hundreds and six fifties with a best of 232 against Sri Lanka in the innings바카라™ victory at Galle earlier this year. The left-hander also smashed a brilliant 141 under pressure and followed that up with a match-winning 65 in Australia바카라™s thrilling two-wicket win in the Ashes opener in Birmingham in 2023.
Steven Smith (Australia)
Steven Smith has been in menacing form and registered 5 hundreds in his last 4 Tests and will be the pivot in the top-order for Australia. He is widely rated as amongst the greatest Test batters of all-time and has scored 10271 runs in 116 Tests at an average of 56.7 with 36 centuries. Smith has a fantastic record at Lord바카라™s with two hundreds in five encounters and averages 58.3 at the venue.
Josh Hazlewood (Australia)
Josh Hazlewood is at the peak of his bowling prowess and will be the most dangerous of the Australian pace trio which also includes Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc. Hazlewood has bagged 57 wickets in just 13 Tests in the 2023-2025 WTC cycle at an average of 19.68 and strike rate of 37.8 (better than Cummins and Starc on both counts). Hazlewood has picked 34 wickets in 8 Tests against South Africa at an average of 26.5. Given his accuracy in line and length, Hazlewood will be a major threat with the seaming new ball at Lord바카라™s.
Kagiso Rabada (South Africa)
Kagiso Rabada will be the main weapon for South Africa and is the leading wicket-taker for the Proteas in the 2023-2025 WTC cycle with 47 dismissals in just 10 Tests at an average of 19.9 and a strike rate of 37.8. Rabada is a modern great and has a tally of 327 wickets in 70 Tests at an average of 22 and strike rate of 39.4 바카라“ it is the best-ever amongst all bowlers with a minimum of 150 wickets in Test history! That showcases his tremendous propensity to pick wickets. Rabada has a splendid record against Australia with 49 wickets in 10 Tests at an average of 23.08 and strike rate of 39.9.
Keshav Maharaj (South Africa)
Keshav Maharaj has picked 40 wickets in just 8 Tests in this WTC cycle at an average of 20.57 and a strike rate of 44.3. He produced two fifers in this time frame 바카라“ one against Bangladesh at Chattogram and the other against Sri Lanka at Port Elizabeth. Maharaj has been extremely consistent and has picked up at least two wickets in each of the 13 innings in this period.
Tristan Stubbs (South Africa)
Tristan Stubbs has played just nine Tests but shown enough glimpses of his talent, which will make him a dangerous middle-order batter in the final at Lord바카라™s. Stubbs has already registered two hundreds in the format, showcasing that he is not just a limited-overs specialist but has the skills and temperament to success in whites for South Africa. However, what will make Stubbs the X-factor for South Africa is his ability to score quick runs 바카라“ he had a strike rate of 191 in IPL 2024 and produced a few cameos this season too for the Delhi Capitals. Stubbs is a terrific player of spin, and his battle with Nathan Lyon could be crucial for South Africa.
Match-Ups
Usman Khawaja vs Kagiso Rabada
Innings 바카라“ 14
Balls 바카라“ 319
Runs 바카라“ 154
Average 바카라“ 30.8
Dismissals 바카라“ 5
Steven Smith vs Keshav Maharaj
Innings 바카라“ 12
Balls 바카라“ 290
Runs 바카라“ 132
Average 바카라“ 33
Dismissals 바카라“ 4
Temba Bavuma vs Josh Hazlewood
Innings 바카라“ 7
Balls 바카라“ 118
Runs 바카라“ 46
Average 바카라“ 23
Dismissals 바카라“ 2
Aiden Markram vs Pat Cummins
Innings 바카라“ 6
Balls 바카라“ 123
Runs 바카라“ 90
Average 바카라“ 22.5
Dismissals 바카라“ 4
Tristan Stubbs vs Spin
Innings 바카라“ 11
Balls 바카라“ 429
Runs 바카라“ 287
Average 바카라“ 95.66
Dismissals 바카라“ 3
Strike Rate 바카라“ 66.89
Venue Analysis 바카라“ Lord바카라™s (since 2021)
The average first innings total at Lord바카라™s since 2021 is 295. The unique slope at the ground and the overhead conditions offer enough assistance for the fast bowlers who have enjoyed massive success at the venue in the last five years. Since the start of 2021, pacers have bagged 233 wickets in just eight Tests at an average of 26.8 at Lord바카라™s. The spinners have found it hard to find any purchase at the venue and have just picked 27 wickets at an average of 46 at Lord바카라™s in this time frame.
There will be some cloud cover over Central London on Wednesday 바카라“ Day 1 of the Test 바카라“ and scattered showers are predicted on Day 2 and 3 which might provide further assistance to the seamers.
