The South Africa national cricket team has become the first team to book a place in the final of the 2025 ICC World Test Championship, which will be played at the iconic Lord’s Cricket Ground in London in June next year.
After South Africa secured a place in the World Trade Center final, it is now a battle between the India national cricket team, the Australia national cricket team and the Sri Lanka national cricket team for the second and final spot.
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South Africa beat Pakistan to qualify for the World Trade Center final
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South Africa turns to the Lord for #World Trade Center25 Final #savpak https://t.co/vWLh4MSQjm pic.twitter.com/sZ5QBnDAYD
– International Criminal Court (@ICC) December 29, 2024
The Proteas beat the Shan Masood-led side in the first Test of the two-match series in Centurion, which began on December 26, to storm into the final of the 2025 ICC World Test Championship.
It was a brilliant display from both teams in the first Test and after a tough fight, it was the hosts who managed to pull off a 2 wicket win. South Africa bundled out Pakistan for 211 in the first innings and put 301 runs on the board in response.
Then, in the second innings, the visitors showed some fight and ended up with a score of 237, setting a target of 148 runs for the Proteas.
In the run chase, the Proteas collapsed as they continued to lose wickets at regular intervals and were reduced to 99/8. The main destroyer behind Pakistan’s sudden dominance was spinner Mohammad Abbas who took 6 wickets.
Meanwhile, South Africa did not lose any more wickets, as Kagiso Rabada (31) and Marko Janssen (16) showed their batting skills and led their team to an epic over.
Notably, the Proteas started the ongoing WTC tournament with a drawn series at home against India and followed it up with a clean sweep at the hands of New Zealand. However, they bounced back with victories over the West Indies, Bangladesh and Pakistan to secure a place in the final, barring any points deduction due to the slow rate.
We didn’t have many chances – Temba Bavuma emotional after South Africa qualified for the FIFA World Cup final
Speaking after South Africa became the first team to secure a place in the final of the ICC World Test Championship, skipper Temba Bavuma was very emotional and said:
“It’s a very emotional moment for me. A lot of joy and happiness on our part. We did it the hard way. But we’re happy we won. I was still sulking. Aiden helped them move on.”
“There weren’t a lot of conversations. We still have confidence. I didn’t go out to the viewing area and I was in the toilet. I came when 15 rounds were needed. It’s a big win. Not just for myself. But for the coaches.”
Temba Bavuma added that many did not give South Africa the chance but they continued to find a way and eventually reached the final. He said:
“The way we started our campaign against India. We didn’t have a lot of chances. We weren’t ruthless. But we kept looking for ways. We hope the players can take confidence from performances like this. Players are under pressure when they play. We would like to We enjoy the moment and evaluate what we have done.”
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How can India secure second place in the final?
Currently, in the ICC World Test Championship points table, South Africa is in first place with 66.67 PCT points. Australia and India – the next two favorites to qualify – are in second and third place with PCT scores of 58.89 and 55.88.
The Rohit Sharma-led team is now under immense pressure to perform well in the ongoing Boxing Day Test and then in the Sydney Test of the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy to qualify for the final.
India’s ongoing match and Sydney’s Test against Australia are the last two matches for them in the ongoing tournament while the Aussies have two more matches against Sri Lanka after the conclusion of BGT.
India, led by Rohit Sharma, needs to win the remaining matches to qualify for the final of the FIFA World Cup without relying on other results, and if it loses both, it will be like a curtain in front of it.
However, if they draw one of the Tests and win the other, they will need to face Australia either losing one to Sri Lanka in their next series or winning by no more than a 1-0 margin.
If the Melbourne and Sydney Tests end in a draw, India would need Australia to lose 1-0 in Sri Lanka or draw 0-0. Meanwhile, the Sri Lanka Lions can also reach the final if they beat Australia 2-0.
