 "The South African team celebrates with the ICC Test Mace after defeating Australia in the World Test Championship Final at Lord's. Reuters")
South Africa pulled off what could be a strong contender for the greatest victory in their cricketing history on Saturday, defeating Australia by five wickets to be crowned world Test champions and heal the wounds caused by years of heartbreaks.
Aiden Markram (136) and Temba Bavuma (66) stood tall during the South Africa’s chase of a challenging 282-run target while Kagiso Rabada was the hero with the ball, collecting nine wickets in the match (5/51 and 4/59) as South Africa ended a 27-year wait for a second ICC trophy.
Australian skipper Pat Cummins was brilliant with the ball as he collected 6/28 in the first innings to bowl South Africa out for a meagre 138, helping his team collect a sizeable 74-run lead and boost their chances of winning back-to-back WTC finals.
The Proteas, however, did not buckle under pressure in a final for once, and thanks primarily to Rabada and Ngidi in Australia’s second innings as well as Markram and Bavuma’s match-winning 147-run partnership, came out on top.
Here’s how former cricketers including Proteas pace legend Dale Steyn reacted to South Africa’s historic win at the ‘Home of Cricket’: