ICC WTC 2023-25 final: "South Africa were deserving champions…" Pat Cummins after Australia lose Lord's clash by five wickets

Pat Cummins-led Australia failed to defend the ICC WTC mace.

In the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 final, Australia Cricket Team and South Africa Cricket Team wrestled with each other. The summit clash took place at the Lord’s in London. The Bavuma-led South Africa dismantled Australia by five wickets to win the match.

South Africa won the toss and opted to field first in the encounter. On the back of Kagiso Rabada’s five-wicket haul, they bundled out Australia for 212 in the first innings. However, they succumbed to the Australian pace attack and got all out for 138 runs. Pat Cummins picked up a six-wicket haul in the first innings to script his name on the Lord’s Honours Board.

In the second innings, Mitchell Starc’s unbeaten fifty helped Australia to reach 207/10 and set up a mammoth 282-run target for the opposition. However, opener Aiden Markram hammered a ton and Temba Bavuma scored a fifty to power the Proteas to a magnificent victory. South Africa won an ICC title after 27 years to create history.

South Africa were deserved champions: Pat Cummins

During the post-match presentation, Australia skipper Pat Cummins said that South Africa deserved to be the champions. He also added that they tried best efforts to bowl out the Proteas in the second innings, however, it didn’t happen.

“Aiden [Markram] was fantastic. South Africa were deserved champions, kept themselves in the game and pounced on the opportunity. Things can change pretty quickly but unfortunately, this was a bridge too far. There’s always a few things, a decent first innings lead and tried to bowl them out, did not happen,” Cummins said.

“It was looking like the wicket flattened out but it can change here, unfortunately it did not. [Nathan] Lyon looked threatening, but he did not get a wicket,” the 32-year-old further added.

Meanwhile, Pat Cummins finished as the leading wicket-taker of the ICC WTC 2023-25 cycle. The right-arm pacer captured 80 wickets in 18 matches during the tournament at an average of 23.48 across 35 innings. The Australian skipper showed a stunning form in three series.

He hunted 18 wickets against England in The Ashes 2023 and 19 scalps in a three-match series against Pakistan. Cummins clinched 25 wickets against India in the crucial Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 to end as the top wicket-taker for his side.

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