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South Africa captain Temba Bavuma has announced the playing XI for the ICC World Test Championship Final against Australia at the Home of Cricket, Lord's, starting on Wednesday, June 11.
Since 1991, South Africa has lost just once at Lords, won five and drawn a solitary match, boasting an impressive success ratio. Meanwhile, the defending champions, Australia, have churned out 18 wins from 40 matches, having a detailed view of how the conditions at the venue play out. Since December 2019, Bavuma has been South Africa's leading run-scorer in Tests, averaging close to 50. Bavuma is leading SA to its first-ever WTC final after topping the 2023-25 standings with a 69.44-point percentage. Since the start of 2020, Bavuma has made 1794 runs in 24 matches, at an average of 48.48 and strike rate of 50, including three centuries and 11 fifties, which makes him the leading run scorer for SA in the WTC cycle. Pat Cummins-led Australia will be looking to retain the mace that they claimed after defeating India in the previous edition of the World Test Championship Final at the Oval in June 2023. Australia hasn't lost a Test series in the past two years, winning away in New Zealand and Sri Lanka while retaining the Ashes in England in 2023. They also defeated Pakistan and India at home, along with a draw against the West Indies, to secure a spot in the WTC decider against the Proteas. With Australia entering their second consecutive WTC final and South Africa making their first appearance, the stakes couldn't be higher. Australia, led by Pat Cummins, come in with the experience of having won the title in 2023, while the Proteas are looking to script a new chapter in their red-ball history. South Africa playing XI: Temba Bavuma (c), Aiden Markram, Ryan Rickelton, Wiaan Mulder, Tristan Stubbs, David Bedingham, Kyle Verrynne, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi. (ANI)
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