Explained: Why South Africa and Australia players are wearing black armbands on day 3 of ICC WTC 2023-25 final

Ankitjit Singh is a Sub-Editor at Khel Now, known for his in-depth knowledge of cricket.

Published at :June 13, 2025 at 3:57 PM

Modified at :June 13, 2025 at 3:57 PM

Explained: Why South Africa and Australia players are wearing black armbands on day 3 of ICC WTC 2023-25 final

(Courtesy : ICC)

The ICC WTC 2023-25 final stands evenly poised with both South Africa and Australia having an equal chance to win.

The South Africa Cricket Team and the Australia Cricket Team are locking horns with each other in the final of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25. The Lord’s Cricket Ground in London is hosting the summit clash, which commenced from 11th June.

The ICC WTC 2023-25 final stands evenly poised, with both South Africa and Australia having an equal chance to win. Two things moved pretty fast on the first two days, and with the way things are panning out, the game is expected to end early.

Currently, day three of the ICC WTC 2023-25 final is underway, and ahead of the start of the play, the players of both South Africa and Australia won the hearts of many with their gestures. They paid tribute to the people who lost their lives in the Ahmedabad plane crash.

South African and Australian players wear black armbands to pay tribute to the victims of the Ahmedabad plane crash

Players of both South Africa and Australia are wearing black armbands on day 3 of the ICC WTC 2023-25 final to pay their tribute to the victims. Not only this, players and spectators also observed silence for a minute in the wake of the heart-wrenching incident.

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Coming to the incident, an Air India flight carrying 242 passengers to London crashed just after takeoff. Apart from one passenger, all the people lost their lives. 169 Indian, 53 British nationals, seven Portuguese and one Canadian passengers were on board.

The ICC WTC 2023-25 final has witnessed a spectacular brand of cricket over the last two days. Australia, who were asked to bat first, got all out for just 212 in the first innings. But, they displayed an even better effort with the ball, bundling out South Africa for just 138 runs to take a healthy lead of 74 runs.

South Africa then replicated what they did with the ball in the first innings, taking wickets quickly to leave Australia at 73 for seven. However, a fight from the lower order powered the lead over 250 runs.

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Ankitjit Singh

Ankitjit Singh is a dedicated sports journalist whose childhood dream was to play cricket—now, he serves the game through his work. With over three years of experience in reporting, writing, and editing, he brings deep insight to his coverage. A journalism graduate from Delhi University, Ankitjit’s passion for cricket took root during his college days and continues to drive his career.