Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood had maintained a flawless record in major finals throughout their careers, winning every summit clash across formats, including for Australia, in the Big Bash League and the IPL. However, that streak came to an end in the 2025 World Test Championship final, where South Africa handed them their first-ever defeat in a major final, winning by five wickets at Lord’s.
Australia skipper Pat Cummins also held the record of never losing an ICC knockout match as captain. With the defeat to the Proteas, his streak too came to an end at Lord’s. The 32-year-old had a sensational outing in the WTC final, picking up a six-wicket haul in the first innings and one more in the second. However, despite his best, Cummins couldn’t inspire Australia to their second WTC title.
Markram, Bavuma pave way for South Africa’s first ICC title in 27 years
Chasing 282 runs wasn’t an easy task but Aiden Markram and Temba Bavuma played some brilliant cricket to win it for South Africa. The Proteas had a rough start, having lost the wickets of Ryan Rickelton and Wiaan Mulder early, but Markram and Bavuma managed to keep the scoreboard ticking as they stitched a partnership of 147 runs.
Markram went on to score a century as he made 136 runs, while Bavuma made 66. The all-rounder became the first South Africa international to score a century in an ICC final. Apart from the century, Markram also picked up the wicket of Steve Smith in the first innings and the wicket of Josh Hazlewood in the second, who seemed to be in good form.
After Bavuma departed, Tristan Stubbs too had gone early, but the Proteas never panicked. That was a major difference from the past years, when they choked and failed to get the job done. Meanwhile, this was the highest run chase by any team in an ICC final.