South Africa will face a litmus test when they face the mighty Australian team in the World Test Championship final in a couple of days. Having been infamously labelled 'chokers', the Proteas would be eager to brush aside the tag and produce something spectacular against the defending Test champions at Lord's.
Lord's was the same venue where the fabled team of South Africa won the Test mace by becoming the No.1 team in the world in 2012. The Graeme Smith-led Proteas had outclassed England in that match and had become the top-ranked team.
That Proteas side had featured the likes of Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla, Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel. Maharaj looks forward to the WTC final against Australia with a bigger motivation as they want to honour these legends.
"I remember watching that when they lifted the mace," he said. "We know that apart from doing it for us, we want to honour the legends of the past and hopefully we will one day be seen in the same calibre and light to win such a coveted title and hold the Test mace."
The Proteas made a strong push in the latter part of the World Test Championship cycle with seven wins in a row ahead of the final. Those wins on the trot not only earned them the ticket to the final, but also made them top the Test championship points table.
"When we started the journey two years ago, a lot of people didn’t think we’d be in this situation, but with each and every series we grew more and more," added Maharaj.
"Our blend of youth and experience complements each other really nicely, and we find ourselves competing for another trophy. The boys have put in a lot of hard work. The excitement is building as we edge closer and it’s now about letting it sink in and soaking up the occasion to allow us to play with freedom," he added.
South Africa have seen several near-misses in the ICC knockouts in recent times with the strongest sting being their T20 World Cup 2024 final loss to India. Maharaj also opened up on their previous experiences of falling short in the ICC events.
"In previous attempts, no one expected us to reach the knockout phases of any competition, but we have reached two semi-finals and two finals.
"Hopefully through all those misses, we come right in this one. There is a lot of inspiration we can draw from in the brand of cricket we have played in the last three or four years. If we run with it and stay true to it, hopefully this is our opportunity to finally raise that most-coveted trophy that has eluded us for a number of years," he said.