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Reigning champions Australia face South Africa in the World Test Championship final at Lord’s, starting on Wednesday. We look at three key contests that could determine the course of the showpiece game: Tough times loom for top-orders Batters on both sides face a tough examination given the quality of fast bowlers on show. Australia captain Pat Cummins could get to 300 Test wickets this week, with his 294 in 67 previous matches coming at an average of just 22.43. He is set to be joined by left-arm quick Mitchell Starc (382 Test wickets at 27.57), with the only real decision…
WTC FINAL 2025 Bavuma and Cummins pose with the mace. © Getty There’s this earnestness to everything Temba Bavuma does as a cricketer. It comes through even more when you hear him speak in a press conference. He’s measured. He’s contemplative. He’s patient. Often, he is also emotional. And he certainly didn’t hold back on his emotions as he addressed the possibility of becoming the first South African captain to lead his country to a proper world title (the 1998 ICC Knockouts notwithstanding). Especially when he started talking about how even getting to Lord’s for this big finale was part…
Since debuting in November 2016, coincidentally against the Aussies, he’s been a regular fixture in the Proteas XI, and it is no fluke that his wicket-taking production continues to be a phenomenon the team not only relies on, but expects. And wickets aren’t the only thing South Africa’s players have grown to expect from their chief spinner. Maharaj’s work ethic, emphatically confirmed by teammates, is about as predictable as it gets. Fellow bowler Lungi Ngidi was willing to ‘put the house’ on Maharaj being the first cricketer to arrive at Lord’s on Wednesday and commence his preparations while the rest…
But beyond the ‘relief’ of going a step further than what some of their predecessors managed, what’s also at stake is the trajectory a potential victory sets South African cricket on in the future – particularly in the red ball format. Wicket-keeper Kyle Verreynne noted the impact the Springboks’ recent World Cup success has had for rugby in South Africa. “(It would mean) everything,” Verreynne also told ICC Digital. “We’ve seen what the rugby (victory) has done. All the adversity that cricket in South Africa has faced… it would be incredibly special.” Opener Tony de Zorzi backed up those sentiments,…
JOIN OUR WHATSAPP CHANNEL Australia captain Pat Cummins has announced the playing XI for the ICC World Test Championship Final against South Africa at Lord’s, sticking with the lineup predicted by cricket legend Ricky Ponting on The ICC Review last month. Veteran opener Usman Khawaja will have a new partner at the top, with Marnus Labuschagne moving up to open the batting. Labuschagne, a former top-ranked Test batter, steps into the role to provide stability alongside Khawaja. In the pace bowling attack, Josh Hazlewood has edged out Scott Boland to join Mitchell Starc and captain Cummins. Hazlewood’s recent form in…
JOIN OUR WHATSAPP CHANNEL Cricket South Africa (CSA) has announced the Playing XI for the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2025 final against Australia, starting on June 11 at Lord’s Cricket Ground. Temba Bavuma will lead the team in this historic showdown. The team features a strong pace attack, with Kagiso Rabada, Marco Jansen, and Lungi Ngidi, who has recovered from a groin injury. Keshav Maharaj is the only specialist spinner in the side. All-rounder Wiaan Mulder will bat at No. 3, with the team management backing him to play his natural game. “Mulder is quite young in that position.…
CNN — The Oklahoma City Thunder evened up the NBA Finals on Sunday by rolling the Indiana Pacers, easing to a 123-107 victory that washed away some of the bad taste left by the Pacers’ dramatic win in the series’ opening game. The Thunder broke away from the Pacers in the second quarter with one of the team’s patented extended runs, the kind of sequence that made OKC the NBA’s best team in the regular season and saw them lead the league in point differential. Led by MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s stellar performance and a strong showing by guard Alex Caruso…
CNN — The first nine days, Will Goodge says, felt like a “revolving nightmare,” an unending cycle of running and eating, running and eating until it was eventually time to sleep. Except when he did try to close his eyes, sleep would rarely feel restorative, only feverish and restless. Hallucinations became an unpleasant and regular occurrence – “kind of like you’re dreaming but awake at the same time,” says Goodge – and a deep, aching sensation had settled into his muscles and bones. At this point, the British influencer and endurance athlete had barely scratched the surface of his record-breaking…
Former Australia star Mel Jones was excited at the prospect of calling a South Africa-Australia clash in a Test final. “Test cricket continues to deliver some of the most captivating stories in our sport, and this WTC Final at Lord’s promises to be another. South Africa and Australia both bring rich traditions and exciting talent to the pitch. “It is a privilege to call this match from the commentary box, and I am sure fans around the world are in for an unforgettable Test.” Jiostar will be producing a Hindi feed from their production hub in Mumbai to be aired…
JOIN OUR WHATSAPP CHANNEL Pakistan pacer Haris Rauf has officially signed with the San Francisco Unicorns for the upcoming 2025 season of Major League Cricket (MLC), adding firepower to the team’s bowling lineup. The announcement was made on the franchise’s social media handle with an exciting caption, “HARIS HAS ARRIVED 🔥💪 Our superstar pace bowler is back.” Despite a tough previous season, where Rauf took only four wickets in nine matches at an average of 73.50 and an economy rate of 9.09, the Unicorns have retained the 31-year-old fast bowler. This move marks Rauf’s third consecutive season in the United…