With six months to go for the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 final, the two teams competing in the game have been finalized on Sunday (January 5). Australia clinched a clinical six-wicket victory over India in Sydney to close out the second spot, which was up for grabs.
In December last year, South Africa secured a thrilling two-wicket victory over Pakistan to become the first team to qualify for the WTC final. The much-awaited showdown between Australia and South Africa is set to be played from June 11 to 15 at Lord’s in London.
The Proteas are currently the finest team in the WTC standings with seven wins in 11 games and 66.67% of possible points. The Temba Bavuma-led side is in course to register a dominating victory over Pakistan in the ongoing Test as well.
Meanwhile, Pat Cummins’ Australia currently holds the second spot with 11 victories in 17 appearances and a point percentage of 63.73.
Interestingly, India and Sri Lanka were also in the fray to qualify for the crucial game. However, after India lost their last test of the 2023-25 cycle in Sydney, they possess a point percentage of 50.00, which would not be sufficient for them.
On the other hand, Sri Lanka will host Australia for the two-match test series, which will conclude this cycle. With a point percentage of 45.45, they don’t stand a chance for staking claim for the biggest prize, even if the side completes a series whitewash.
What Pat Cummins said on qualifying for WTC final?
Australian Pat Cummins expressed his happiness at winning the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 3-1 against India on Sunday in Sydney. The hosts chased down the 162-run target with six wickets to spare, with Usman Khawaja (41) emerging as the top contributor.
Reflecting on Australia’s qualification for the WTC final, Cummins lauded the whole group for their impressive performances for the past two years. He now wishes to defend the WTC crown, which they won against India by 209 runs in June 2023 at The Oval, London.
“It’s huge for us, we talk about the World Test Championship a lot. It’s a trophy we are really proud to hold so we want to go back and defend it. To play well consistently across different conditions and against different teams, yeah it’s great, can’t wait to get over there,” Cummins was quoted as saying by Sportstar.
Cummins also praised the performance of debutant Beau Webster, who contributed 96 runs and took a single wicket in the Sydney Test.
