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Temba Bavuma led from the front and played an instrumental role in South Africa's five-wicket win over Australia in the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-2025 final which ended their 27-year-long drought of ICC title on June 14. While Temba Bavuma's individual batting statistics might not immediately suggest dominance, his record as captain now stands as a testament to his leadership prowess. On the momentous occasion June 14 at the iconic Lord's ground, South Africa skipper orchestrated a stunning victory for the Proteas in the WTC final.
Bavuma assumed the captaincy in early 2023 and has quietly engineered a resurgence in South Africa's red-ball cricket. In a mere ten Test matches as the leader, he has impressively guided the team to nine victories and one draw. This remarkable record includes significant series wins and now culminates in securing the most prestigious prize in Test cricket. In this final, South Africa successfully chased down a challenging target of 282 runs against the defending champions, Australia, thereby etching their name alongside New Zealand (2021) and Australia (2023) as winners in the three editions of the championship.
Bavuma's contribution in the final was pivotal, leading from the front. After a determined knock of 36 in South Africa's first innings total of 138, he returned in the crucial fourth innings under immense pressure. Displaying remarkable resilience, the captain played a gritty innings of 66 runs off 134 balls. This anchored a vital 147-run partnership for the third wicket with Aiden Markram, who scored a match-winning 136 off 207 balls, laying the foundation for their historic triumph.
Right after the win, South Africa's match winner Aiden Markram, who cracked a historic 136 to help South Africa overhaul Australia's 282-run target with 5 wickets to spare, was full of praise for his captain Bavuma, who braved injury to play one of the most memorable knock in team's winning cause.
Aiden Markram all praise for Temba Bavuma's memorable knock
Markram, who was adjudged Player of the match for his stunning knock, said that Bavuma played an innings lot of people will remember. Despite visibly struggling with a hamstring injury sustained early in his second innings, Bavuma kept on batting. Urged by his batting partner Markram, the South African skipper opted to continue, recognising the critical importance of maintaining their burgeoning partnership. This decision proved to be instrumental as their stand brought South Africa to the precipice of securing the WTC title.
"Haven't scored more important runs. Weird how things worked out after a duck in the first innings. Need a bit of luck, glad things worked out. Reception will stick out. Lord's is the place everyone wants to play. Plenty of SA fans who've made through, one of the most special days. It's always one side of the sword to absorb, but when you look at the wicket and quality of the bowling, you have x amount of balls to face and have to be proactive. Lyon's one of the best, have had plenty of banter, if this went to day five and it kept spinning, he'd have been a handful. (Asking Temba to stay during injury) To be honest, a lot of it came from him. He's led us from the front for the last two-three years. He wasn't going anywhere, played an innings lot of people will remember," Markram said at the post-match presentation.
Interestingly, Bavuma's batting form has mirrored his success as a leader. Since taking on the captaincy, he has amassed over 900 runs at an impressive average of 57, a significant improvement that has been instrumental in South Africa's resurgence in Test cricket. This World Test Championship final triumph not only ends South Africa's long wait for an ICC title, dating back to the 1998 ICC KnockOut Trophy, but also firmly establishes Temba Bavuma as one of the most successful Test captains in the history of South African cricket.
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