London (Web Desk): South Africa broke their long-standing global title drought in style, outplaying defending champions Australia by five wickets at Lord’s on Saturday to clinch the 2023–25 ICC World Test Championship.
The triumph, sealed on the fourth day of play, marked their first major ICC trophy since lifting the 1998 KnockOut Trophy, the predecessor to the Champions Trophy.
The star of the show was Aiden Markram, whose commanding century anchored the Proteas’ run chase and finally delivered the big-stage performance the team had yearned for across decades of near-misses.
The weight of history sat heavy on South Africa, who had come up short in 18 previous attempts at the ODI and T20 World Cups, with just one final appearance to show for it.
That came only last year in the T20 World Cup in Barbados, where they suffered a painful defeat to India despite needing only 30 runs off the last 30 deliveries with six wickets in hand.
Resuming their final innings on 213 for 2 and requiring just 69 more to seal victory, Markram and Temba Bavuma resumed their steady pursuit.
But Australia struck early on the fourth morning, removing Bavuma in just the third over of the day as he edged behind after a determined 66 off 134 balls, including five boundaries. That early setback didn’t rattle the Proteas.
Markram, well in control, added 24 runs with Tristan Stubbs before the latter fell for a painstaking 8 from 43 balls, undone by Mitchell Starc.
At 241 for 4, South Africa still had work to do. Enter David Bedingham, who proved a calm foil for Markram as the pair stitched together a crucial 35-run partnership.
Markram, nearing the finish line and having done the heavy lifting, was eventually dismissed by Josh Hazlewood for a superb 136 from 207 balls, peppered with 14 fours. With just six runs remaining, Bedingham and wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne closed out the chase without further drama, ensuring a smooth passage to glory.
The groundwork for South Africa’s win was laid earlier in the match when they rolled over Australia for 207 in the second innings on day three.
Mitchell Starc, batting at number nine, led the resistance with a gritty unbeaten 58, the only substantial contribution as the Australian batting order failed to impose itself.
Australia had made a modest 212 in their first innings, thanks to Beau Webster’s aggressive 72 off 92 balls and Steve Smith’s composed 62 from 112 deliveries. Kagiso Rabada was the destroyer-in-chief, picking up five wickets in a fiery 15.4-over spell, with Marco Jansen supporting well with three scalps.
South Africa’s first innings, however, fell short at 138, with Bedingham again top-scoring, this time with 45.
Pat Cummins turned in a vintage performance with the ball, bagging six wickets and receiving solid support from Starc, who took two.
Despite conceding a 74-run lead on first innings, South Africa’s bowlers pulled things back in the second dig, and their batters, led by Markram’s masterclass, ensured that the long wait for a major global crown was finally over.