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Temba Bavuma and Aiden Markram stitched an unbeaten 143-run stand ©Getty “Oh, Temba Bavuma.” The singing started coming from the mostly South Africa fans in the Mound Stand at Lord’s on Friday, long before Bavuma had reached 50. Sung in the style that people would use to serenade Jeremy Corbyn, it hardly stopped as the day wore on. Unlike the former UK Labour Party leader, Bavuma is still in the spotlight. He will resume on Saturday needing 35 more runs to score his fifth Test century. But, already, he has delivered the innings of his career. As has Aiden Markram,…
Such is the tension of South Africa’s charge at Lord’s that even bathroom breaks must wait. ©Getty On Friday evening, the South African players timed their bathroom breaks based on the breaks in play. Whether it was at drinks or when their captain was being treated for his hamstring. Not because they were asked to do so. But more due to the need they felt as a collective to maintain the same rhythm inside the dressing-room that Temba Bavuma and Aiden Markram had built up in the middle of Lord’s. It was that kind of partnership after all. The types…
The third-wicket pair added 143 runs for the third wicket ©Getty A plane falls out of the sky in Ahmedabad, killing hundreds. Israel attacks Iran, killing several and terrifying millions. It’s Friday the 13th and it feels unforgivably frivolous to concern ourselves with mere cricket. Yet there we were, alive and well and at Lord’s for the third day of the WTC final between South Africa and Australia. In times of death and destruction, life goes on with an unnerving and cruel inevitability. So does cricket. There was, then, something simultaneously poignant and emotionless about Ryan Rickelton roaring around the…
MIAMI: FIFA’s billion-dollar gamble to revolutionise club football begins on Saturday with plenty of cash up for grabs but questionable enthusiasm as 32 teams prepare to contest the expanded Club World Cup in 12 stadiums across the United States. The tournament designed as a glittering curtain-raiser for the 2026 World Cup has had to contend with the prospect of empty seats along with controversial qualification rules and player welfare concerns after an exhausting European season. Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami face Egypt’s Al Ahly in the opening fixture of the June 14-July 13 tournament in Miami against the backdrop of legal…
MELBOURNE: Pakistan’s star batter Babar Azam will play in the Big Bash League for the first time after he was signed by Sydney Sixers before next week’s player draft. The former national team captain, the second-highest run scorer in the history of T20 Internationals, will be available for the entirety of the 2025-26 season. “The Sydney Sixers are thrilled to announce the signing of Pakistan superstar Babar Azam for the upcoming BBL15 season, marking one of the biggest acquisitions in the leagues history,” the club announced on its website on Friday. Babar, has played 320 T20 matches in a number…
WORLD TEST CHAMPIONSHIP, 2025 FINAL After a duck in the first innings, Aiden Markram made up with an excellent hundred © Getty Aiden Markram’s majestic eighth Test Century, ably supported by a hobbling Temba Bavuma’s 65 not out at the other end, put South Africa on the brink of glory as they went to stumps on 213/2, in a chase of 282, on Day 3 of the 2025 World Test Championship final at Lord’s. Australia endured a wicket-less final session that saw South Africa make a terrific comeback and surge ahead, riding on the unbroken 143-run stand. With the sun…
As Temba Bavuma hobbled off Lord’s at the tea break, the Proteas were confronted with a crucial decision Two hours after contemplating retiring hurt, courageous captain Temba Bavuma had jubilant South African fans singing his name. Bavuma, the diminutive No.4, is poised to become the man to lead the Proteas to a drought-breaking world cricket title at Lord’s on Saturday. After decades of heartbreaking near-misses, often against Australia, South Africa are just 69 runs away from winning the World Test Championship final. Bavuma (65no) is set to finish the job when he resumes with century-maker Aiden Markram (102no), with the…
Daniel Vettori says Australia are eyeing one wicket at time rather than all eight they need to claim an unlikely World Test Championship after South Africa mounted an almighty comeback on day three at Lord’s. Australia face a monumental task to win back-to-back WTC titles when play resumes on Saturday with the Proteas requiring just 69 runs with eight wickets still in the sheds to reverse their painful history at ICC events. South Africa surged back into the contest during the final two sessions on Friday as Aiden Markram (102 not out) and captain Temba Bavuma (65no) took the game…
Oakmont, Pennsylvania CNN — Some of the world’s most recognizable names in golf, including defending champion Bryson DeChambeau, won’t be around at the US Open this weekend after missing the cut at the brutal Oakmont Country Club. DeChambeau shot a 7-over 77 to put him at 10-over through the first two days of golf’s third major of the year, a few shots more than the cutline that winnows the field before the third and fourth rounds. The two-time US Open champion was haunted by the thick rough around Oakmont’s greens throughout the day, missed many of the course’s narrow fairways…
South Africa batting coach Ashwell Prince believes the team is under no pressure despite being on the brink of breaking a long-standing ICC title drought. As Day 3 of the Ultimate Test came to a close, South Africa needed just 69 more runs to secure the ICC World Test Championship crown — their first ICC men’s title since 1998. Prince emphasised that the team is in no hurry to finish the game, and are focused and composed as they edge closer to a historic victory. “One of the things we said before the run chase was that the game will…