South Africa created history by upsetting Australia at Lord’s to win the 2025 World Test Championship final. The Proteas started the WTC cycle on a disastrous note- they effectively sent a “C” team to New Zealand because they wanted their main players to feature in the SA20, but aided by a relatively decent draw and some strong individual performances from different players, booked their spot for the finale at Lord’s.
Here are our talking points from the game, and what it could potentially mean for the future of cricket’s longest format outside the Big Three.
Proteas defy odds by beating Australia
South Africa had never won an ICC title in their history (unless one counts the 1998 Wills Knockout Trophy, which later came to be known as the first edition of the Champions Trophy) and had a history of being “chokers”. The term first started to be used for them at the 1999 World Cup, where they failed to chase 1 run from 4 balls in the semi-final against Australia- a match that many cricket enthusiasts say changed the fortunes of both teams for the upcoming decade.
Even the most ardent South African fans (and there were plenty of them at Lord’s), would’ve reckoned the Proteas had better chances at an online casino rather than beating the all-conquering Aussies in a knockout final. Australia were the in-form team at the WTC and had demolished India en-route to the final. Their batting, at least on paper, was significantly better than South Africa’s, with the bowling attacks being mostly even.
Many expected the Proteas to crumble while chasing a 250+ target in the fourth innings, but they held their nerve, mainly thanks to a flawless innings from Aiden Markram.
Sauce’s best innings?
Sauce is Aiden Markram’s nickname, and he played one of his best (some would say his best ever) to help the Proteas cross the line. There has never been a question of Markram’s talent, but there have been plenty of questions regarding his consistency. His century here was practically chanceless and risk free- he didn’t give the Aussies a sniff until that final shot when victory was practically secured.
Markram has an excellent record against Australia, and his fans will be hoping that he can kick on further as he enters the prime of his batting career.
Ngidi plays a crucial role with the ball
There were plenty of folks wondering whether whether South Africa should’ve chosen Dane Paterson over Lungi Ngidi in this test, and the latter’s insipid first innings display did nothing to quell those questions.
He however produced a fine spell in Australia’s second innings- a crucial one that accounted for Steve Smith and Beau Webster and later on, Alex Carey. Smith and Webster had been Australia’s top scorers in the first innings, but were dismissed for low scores in the second innings, and Carey’s wicket was taken at a crucial time when he was threatening to take the game away from South Africa.
Aus players getting long in the tooth?
Several of Australia’s players, including their much-vaunted pace trio, are all in the wrong side of 30. Is there a bit of succession planning to be done to ensure that the replacements have enough experience once the main folks retire?
Test cricket outside the Big 3
South Africa have mostly been restricted to 2 test series in this cycle, and winning this WTC gives the longest format a bit of a boost in the country. They are certainly good enough to play longer series (it’s only the financial aspect that’s a bit of a worry), and this might help them play more 3 and 4 test ones, if not 5, in the future.