Five crucial battles at the World Test Championship Final

By Rahul Pandey

The third ICC World Test Championship Final is upon us.

South Africa will battle it out against defending champions Australia in the summit clash starting on June 11 at the fabled Lord’s Cricket Ground.

The Proteas finished top of the WTC table, winning seven of their last eight matches to seal their berth in the final for the first time. Australia meanwhile booked their second consecutive final spot, securing their place with a home series win against India in their recent home summer.

The two teams possess several match-winners in their squads, who can turn the game on its head. We examine five key match-ups that could decide the clash:

Kagiso Rabada v Usman Khawaja

A new-ball contest between South Africa’s leading wicket-taker and Australia’s highest run-scorer in this World Test Championship cycle could set the tone for the Final.

Kagiso Rabada going full throttle against Usman Khawaja offers an intriguing battle. Khawaja has set the tone going for Australia with 1422 runs from his 19 innings this WTC cycle, while Rabada has claimed 47 wickets from 20 innings.

Holding the advantage in prior contests is South Africa’s premium speedster, who’s got the better of Khawaja five times in 10 matches the duo have collided against each other.

Rabada will also take cue from the left-hander’s recent troubles against quality pace bowling featuring India’s Jasprit Bumrah during the five Tests on Australian soil. Khawaja was dismissed by Bumrah six times during the course of the series.

Khawaja on the other hand, will look back at the success he enjoyed on his last visit to England, scoring 496 runs during the Ashes in 2023.

Marco Jansen v Steve Smith

Much of the fast bowling responsibility at the other end for South Africa will be courtesy of left-arm seamer Marco Jansen. Having made an early impression in the previous WTC cycle, the 25-year-old came into his own in the second cycle, helping South Africa to the final, claiming 29 wickets in six Tests.

A prominent feature of the searing quick has been his use of the angular advantage he holds over right-handed batters. Of his 78 Test wickets, 57 have been right-handers, a staggering 73.07 percent.

It sets up for an exciting match-up against Australia stalwart, Steve Smith, who comes into the final on the back of a memorable tour of Sri Lanka. Leading Australia to a 2-0 clean sweep, Smith compiled two hundreds in the series, and reached 10,000 Test runs, to close his side’s WTC campaign on a high note.

The veteran batter was also a key performer in Australia’s WTC 2023 Final triumph against India at The Oval, where he also posted a scintillating ton.

An exciting young quick facing a seasoned batting icon, this has all the makings of an ‘unstoppable force meets an immovable object’ clash.

Temba Bavuma v Pat Cummins

South Africa skipper Temba Bavuma led by example in the back half of the Proteas’ march to the WTC Final.

Missing out on five of the first six Tests South Africa played, Bavuma came back, amassing 609 runs from 11 innings, at an incredible 60.90. His run-scoring eased the pressure of multiple newcomers in South Africa’s red-ball batting lineup.

The experienced campaigner will seek to blunt a ruthless Australian bowling attack led by the irrepressible Pat Cummins.

Returning from a recent injury, the Australian skipper possesses a grave threat to Bavuma and the Proteas batting line-up. Cummins’ diverse arsenal offers him a range of options to utilise against the best of foes, and his impressive haul of 73 wickets in this WTC cycle - second only to Jasprit Bumrah - show for it.

How a newly rekindled batter in Bavuma maneuvers against a dexterous Cummins will be a crucial plot point to the final.

Ryan Rickelton v Mitchell Starc

Another exciting new-ball match-up that is richly-anticipated comes in the form of South Africa’s opener and Australia’s left-arm gun.

The Proteas left-handed sensation has taken little time to establish himself as one of the exciting prospects across formats. To go with his incredible range of shots, Rickelton hasn’t lacked the composure to bat for longer periods, with 451 runs from six Tests in this WTC cycle.

This included a career-best score of 259 against Pakistan, an innings that elevated his stock in the post-Dean Elgar era.

In a fierce quick such as Starc, Rickelton may find his toughest challenge yet when it comes to Test cricket.

The left-arm veteran, reputed for delivering on the big stage, will aim to dictate. Meanwhile, during his short time as an international cricketer, Rickelton hasn’t held back from a full length delivery against the new-ball.

Tristan Stubbs and David Bedingham v Nathan Lyon

Bolstering South Africa’s batting in the middle order are Tristan Stubbs and David Bedingham, two batters who can accelerate the run-scoring with their attacking strokeplay.

While Stubbs has proven his attacking prowess across formats, Bedingham - who has only featured in the longest format for South Africa - has also not second-guessed before taking down the opposition attack once the ball gets old.

With this approach the 31-year-old has finished as South Africa’s leading run-scorer in this WTC cycle (645).

The duo are likely to have Australia’s premier operator Nathan Lyon in their mind in their quest to accumulate quick runs.

Despite the conditions at Lord’s more suited to the seamers, finger-spinner Lyon will offer a handy outlet to Australia, also leveraging the slope of the ground.

Lyon also has an impressive haul from his last outing in the Ultimate Test, when he returned with the best figures in the second innings as Australia clinched the World Test Championship mace.

His battle with the Proteas middle-order duo offers an enticing storyline that may hold the key to how many runs South Africa end up scoring.