Australia and South Africa will face each other in the final of the World Test Championship at Lords on 11th June.
Match Preview:
This will be the first World Test Championship (WTC) final ever held at Lord’s, the historic home of cricket. But it’s far from the first time Australia and South Africa have crossed paths there. Over a century ago, in 1912, the two teams faced off at Lord’s in a Triangular Test tournament that included England—the only three Test nations at the time. That tournament may have flopped, but it hinted at the kind of global Test competition the WTC would one day become. Australia won that 1912 clash by ten wickets. Now, 113 years later, they return to Lord’s as reigning WTC champions and strong favourites to win again—an opinion even some former South African players have openly acknowledged.
For South Africa, though, this final carries heavy weight. They’re not just up against Australia—they’re up against history. Their lone ICC trophy came in 1998. There’s also a narrative that they’ve had an easy ride to the final, even though they’ve surged with seven straight wins after a slow start in this two-year cycle. And then there’s the opponent: Australia, a team they’ve shared some of the fiercest and most gripping Test battles with over the past three decades.
That said, their last meeting in 2022-23 was anything but close—possibly the most lopsided series between the two in 30 years. And while pacer Kagiso Rabada and others have hinted at the potential for a fiery contest, this isn’t your typical hard-nosed Aussie team.
Instead of gearing up with battlefield pilgrimages like past generations, this Australian squad prepared with five days of golf in northern Scotland, just like they did before the 2023 final. Relaxed and battle-tested, most of this team has already played—and won—on the biggest stages. Many of them are chasing a fourth world title across three formats in just four years. Their bowling unit is one of the most dominant in history, and they’re backed by elite batters like Steven Smith, who’s rediscovered his form, and Travis Head, who’s scored centuries in his last two global finals.
Still, Australia had some selection puzzles to solve. Cameron Green returns to the Test XI for the first time in 15 months. He’s fit to bat but not bowl, and he’ll slot in at No. 3—a position he’s only occupied once before in first-class cricket. That reshuffle pushes Marnus Labuschagne up to open for the first time in Tests, making Usman Khawaja’s opening partner the fifth different one in his last nine matches.
South Africa, by contrast, have named a more settled batting order. But many of their players are unknown quantities to the Aussies in the Test arena. Only Aiden Markram and captain Temba Bavuma have previously faced Australia in this format. However, Aussie bowlers have seen plenty of Ryan Rickelton and Tristan Stubbs in the IPL, with Stubbs even sharing a dressing room with Mitchell Starc.
The stage is set. One team is chasing legacy. The other is chasing redemption.
Playing XI:
South Africa : 1 Aiden Markram, 2 Ryan Rickleton, 3 Wiaan Mulder, 4 Temba Bavuma (capt), 5 Tristan Stubbs, 6 David Bedingham, 7 Kyle Verreynne, 8 Marco Jansen, 9 Keshav Maharaj, 10 Kagiso Rabada, 11 Lungi Ngidi
Australia: 1 Usman Khawaja, 2 Marnus Labuschagne, 3 Cameron Green, 4 Steven Smith, 5 Travis Head, 6 Beau Webster, 7 Alex Carey (wk), 8 Pat Cummins (capt), 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Nathan Lyon, 11 Josh Hazlewood
Pitch and weather report:
Up until the past week, the English summer had been a fairly dry start. There will be some speculation over the conditions because neither South Africa nor Australia have much experience playing at Lord’s in early June. The surface is on the drier side due to the dry spring, which can have a greater effect on the spinners. Despite the possibility of a few thunderstorms, the weather is favorable with mild temperatures expected.
Head-to-head record:
A total of 101 matches have been played between the two sides with Australia winning 54 and South Africa stood victorious in 26.
Prediction:
Australia is favourite to win this final.
Where to watch:
Pakistan: tapmad
India: JioHotstar
USA: Willow TV
Australia: Amazon Prime Video
NZ: Sky Sport Now
SA: DSTV app
UK: Sky Go
