London: Marnus Labuschagne has kept Sam Konstas out of the Australian team for the World Test Championship final at Lord’s.
Captain Pat Cummins confirmed the team at 1pm local time in London, with Cameron Green coming back at number three in the order and Josh Hazlewood beating Scott Boland for the third pace bowling spot.
Sam Konstas has made way at the top of the Australian order for Marnus Labuschagne.Credit: Getty/AP
As the world’s best team over the past four years, Australia are more or less a well-known quantity entering the World Test Championship final at Lord’s.
Aside from some doubts about Labuschagne’s place in their future, Cummins’ team is extremely settled, with vast experience and plenty of confidence in themselves.
Lately, Cummins, his deputy Steve Smith and others have hinted they may well keep playing for longer than once thought, an indicator of how much they are enjoying the game at present. There are few surprises about the setup, just a lot of quality and durability in the face of advancing years. They do not look like a fading force.
The biggest question this week, then, is about South Africa. Are they up to challenging Australia in a one-off game to decide the title, or might they find themselves revisiting the hated “chokers” tag that has followed the Proteas around at showpiece finals for most of the past three decades?
South Africa bowling consultant Stuart Broad speaks to Kagiso Rabada, right, during a nets session at Lord’s.Credit: AP
Tellingly, South Africa’s coach, the plain-speaking Shukri Conrad, has not been shy about forcing his players to confront that tag. In December, when the Proteas looked like they might cough up a winning position against Pakistan on home soil when qualification for the final was up for grabs, he challenged the team not to choke.
The result was a narrow victory, and Conrad revisited that territory this week.
“I thought it was the opportune time to lay down that challenge,” Conrad said. “Maybe because we had another chance, if it didn’t go our way we had another chance in Cape Town. But yeah, it didn’t go down kindly, but at some stage that conversation needs to be had, you know, and it’s all about choosing when to have that.
“So we added the evening before, left it, result worked out okay. We touched on it briefly the other day around, what were the learnings from that and what sort of response we can expect and we’re looking for and that’s pretty much been the long and short of that conversation.”
At the same time, Conrad is adamant that his players should not have to wear the scars of past teams.
“I think it’s unfair to burden this group with anything that’s gone before,” he said. “But again, just like the previous question, you can’t wish things away. We know we want to and we need to win another ICC event but whatever tags come along yeah we don’t we don’t wear that and like I said it’s unfair to burden this group with that.
“It’s just another occasion to set the record straight and to to get that first title. And you can only win it if you play in finals, you know, and the more finals you play in, you obviously improve your chances of winning. So we’ve got another chance here.
“We had a chance not so long ago in the West Indies in the T20 World Cup. And now we’ve got another opportunity. And yeah, hopefully this time we break that duck.”
Unquestionably, victory in this WTC decider would mean more to South Africa. It would be a fillip for a country that has long battled to make the sums add up to play as much Test cricket as Australia, England and India. And in London, the Proteas will almost certainly have more support among neutral spectators.
But they face a formidable challenge in Australia. Rested and primed, they also now have the benefit of a rejuvenated Smith at number four.
“I’ve had a good break, I’ve had a couple of months off and had my first hit the other day and everything sort of clicked into place immediately,” Smith said. “So I haven’t had to work as hard as I thought I would have had to do this week, if that makes sense.”
Need to know: The 2025 world Test Championship
Australia squad: Pat Cummins (capt), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Matt Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster. Travelling reserve: Brendan Doggett
South Africa squad: Temba Bavuma (capt), David Bedingham, Corbin Bosch, Tony de Zorzi, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Senuran Muthusamy, Lungi Ngidi, Dane Paterson, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne
The pitch: Has looked drier than what is usually prepared at Lord’s and so the spin of Nathan Lyon and Keshav Maharaj is expected to play a part as the game evolves. “It does look like quite a dry surface and I think the foot marks will definitely come into play as the game wears on,” Steve Smith said.
The weather: Some London rain is forecast for day two, but otherwise the expectation is for fine and warming weather that will peak in the high 20s.
The world Test championship final between Australia and South Africa starts Wednesday at Lord’s from 7.30pm (AEST).
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