Aiden Markram’s outstanding unbeaten century has propelled South Africa to the brink of a historic victory over Australia in the World Test Championship final at Lord’s. As the match heads toward its dramatic conclusion, South Africa requires just 69 runs more to win the World Cup. Their batting order has worked unimaginable magic all game long.
Both teams have had a hard time on the field as it begins to level off. This change is making conditions increasingly favorable for the batters come the third day of the test match. Having posted 212 runs in their first innings, Australia mustered just 207 runs in the second dig. Mitchell Starc emerged as a key player for Australia, contributing an invaluable 58 not out, but it was insufficient to set a challenging target for South Africa.
Kagiso Rabada had been the bowling star on that South African side, with his match figures of 5-51 and 4-59 a window into his full potential. The pace bowler’s efforts played a crucial role in restricting Australia’s scoring capabilities throughout the match. South Africa then struggled in their first innings, only scoring 138 runs. David Bedingham was the player to watch as he led the local improvers with 45 runs to his name.
South Africa’s batting looked in much better touch as the day went on. Temba Bavuma anchored the innings well with a stoic 65 not out as he provided stability and composure to that of Markram. The highlight of the day came when Markram reached his century in the penultimate over, demonstrating his skill and determination to guide his team toward victory.
Ashwell Prince, South Africa’s batting coach, told the BBC about the pre-match plan to Temba Bavuma’s fitness in the high-pressure moments.
“At tea-time we had to make a call on Temba’s fitness. Temba was adamant he wanted to continue. Towards the end of play last night and this morning there were good signs for us: the nicks dropping shorter and the relevant comfort the tailenders were batting with, and generally day three is the best day for batting.” – Ashwell Prince
Though South Africa may have the momentum, it’s the Australian players that head into this match with a high level of confidence. Captain Beau Webster was honest about what went wrong, but reiterated the element of cricket that is all too often unpredictable.
“The conditions probably didn’t go our way but we’ll just have to go out there again tomorrow. The boys will be looking at any advantage we can get tomorrow. Strange things happen in this game so we’ll see what happens.” – Beau Webster
South Africa require only 69 runs to win the match and clinch victory. With a solid batting order in the middle they are within reaching distance of completing one of the biggest achievements in their cricketing history. Fans and analysts alike are mesmerized by the matchup. So too do fans and supporters, who are still waiting for a game-changing moment for the franchise.
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