10/06/2025

TUESDAY | JUNE 10, 2025

28

SPORTS

Aussies favourites to win crown ‘Flawed’ Test Championship

FACTBOX

HEAD-TO-HEAD Test matches played: 101 Australia wins: 54 South Africa wins: 26 Draws: 21 Tied: 0 LAST FIVE TESTS Jan 2023: Match drawn in Sydney Dec 2022: Australia won by an innings and 182 runs in Melbourne Dec 2022: Australia won by six wickets in Brisbane March 2018: South Africa won by 492 runs in Johannesburg March 2018: South Africa won by 322 runs in Cape Town AUSTRALIA’S LAST FIVE TEST RESULTS Feb 2025 (away): Beat Sri Lanka by nine wickets Jan 2025 (away): Beat Sri Lanka by an innings and 242 runs Jan 2025 (home): Beat India by six wickets Dec 2024 (home): Beat India by 184 runs Dec 2024 (home): Match drawn against India SOUTH AFRICA’S LAST FIVE TEST RESULTS Jan 2025 (home): Beat Pakistan by 10 wickets Dec 2024 (home): Beat Pakistan by two wickets Dec 2024 (home): Beat Sri Lanka by 109 runs Nov 2024 (home): Beat Sri Lanka by 233 runs Oct 2024 (away): Beat Bangladesh by an innings and 273 runs

Australia vs South Africa VENUE: Lord’s in London, widely referred to as the ‘home of cricket’, hosts the final from June 11-15 with play starting at 10.30am local time (5.30pm in Malaysia). June 16 has been reserved as an additional day if there are any weather delays. AUSTRALIA Test ranking: 1 Captain: Pat Cummins Coach: Andrew McDonald Highest ranked batsman: Steve Smith (5) Highest ranked bowler: Pat Cummins (3) Squad: Cummins (captain), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Matt Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Smith, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster SOUTH AFRICA Test ranking: 3 Captain: Temba Bavuma Coach: Shukri Conrad Highest ranked batsman in squad: Aiden Markram (18) Highest ranked bowler: Kagiso Rabada (2) Squad: Bavuma (captain), David Bedingham, Corbin Bosch, Tony de Zorzi, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Senuran Muthusamy, Lungi Ngidi, Dane Paterson, Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne.

R EIGNING champions Australia face South Africa in the World Test Championship final at Lord’s starting tomorrow amid a chorus of criticism over the competition’s format. Wisden, cricket’s ‘bible’, was scathing in its assessment, with editor Lawrence Booth writing in this year’s edition that the WTC is a “shambles masquerading as a showpiece”. Meanwhile, former England captain Michael Atherton said “everyone knows the WTC in its present guise is flawed”. One fundamental problem is that political tensions mean India and Pakistan, two of cricket’s leading nations, have not played a Test against each other since 2007. The nine-nation WTC is further skewed because the teams are not being required to face each other or to play the same number of matches, unlike most sports leagues. Countries are free to decide how many Tests they would like to play in the two-year qualifying cycle – something Booth wants doubled to four years, with the top nine in the rankings all playing each other, home and away, over series that last at least three Tests. Positions are calculated on the percentage of available points won by teams. Australia will have to dust off the cobwebs but are still fancied to successfully defend their WTC crown against equally ring-rusty Proteas in the final at Lord’s. The Aussies have not played a Test since beating Sri Lanka in Galle in February when they made sure JOS BUTTLER top-scored for England again as they chased down an imposing target and beat West Indies by four wickets in the second T20 on Sunday to take a 2-0 lead and seal the three-match series, continuing their excellent form under new captain Harry Brook. Former captain Buttler’s 47 from 36 balls at Bristol’s County Ground came on the back of his 96 in the first T20 in Durham and set the platform for England to hunt down West Indies’ total of 196-6 with nine balls to spare. It was a second straight series victory for England under the captaincy of Brook after they secured a 3-0 series sweep in the one-dayers. Jacob Bethell hit a thrilling 26 from 10 balls, which included three sixes, as England spread the runs throughout the team with Ben Duckett (30), Brook (34) and Tom Banton (30) providing solid backup. LEWIS HAMILTON cheekily offered his Mercedes seat to test and reserve driver Frederik Vesti last year following a storm of intense hailstones and flash flooding at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve before FP1 for the Canadian Grand Prix. Danish driver Vesti finished second in the Formula 2 standings in 2023 and was promoted as Mercedes’ reserve driver for last season. He showcased his skills in two FP1 sessions in 2024 in Abu Dhabi and Mexico, substituting for Hamilton and teammate George Russell respectively. He was also in the cockpit in “We had a lot of fun out there,” said Brook. “They had a very good finish. We stuck to our plans through the middle really well. They didn’t get away. “We had a discussion before going out

reveals world cricket’s underlying problems

of a top-two finish in the standings from results for the 2023-25 WTC cycle. South Africa were assured of top place when they won their last Test against Pakistan at home in January to book a first-ever finals appearance. It came on the back of a run of seven successive wins, but the fact they did not play against the Aussies or England has seen their achievement dismissed as too easy. Proteas coach Shukri Conrad objected that South Africa had beaten teams who had beaten the ‘Big Three’ of India, Australia and England. “One of the nobodies we beat won a Test match in Australia – West Indies beat Australia in a Test match. They are not nobody,” insisted Conrad. “New Zealand beat India: three-zip in India. New Zealand is not a nobody. “Sri Lanka won Test matches (against England and New Zealand).I don’t buy this thing about us beating nobody.” Victory in the final would be a boost to South Africa following years of hurt in ICC white-ball tournaments, with Conrad saying after qualification was secured. “I’m never going to apologise for getting into the final. “It’s the biggest thing in this team’s existence. It’s the biggest thing for South African cricket at the moment.” – AFP/Reuters

England seal T20 series against Windies

England’s Jos Buttler plays a shot during the second T20 International cricket match against the West Indies. – AFPPIC

to bat that it was only a matter of a couple of big overs. We chased the score beautifully. It was a very good performance.” England, who won the toss and chose to bowl, got off to the perfect start with Luke Wood, who was the hosts’ standout bowler with 2-25 in his first appearance since September 2023, striking Evin Lewis on the pads with the day’s first delivery, but the tourists quickly steadied the ship. “It’s my first game in an England shirt for a year and half. I’m just trying to make my mark when you get a chance to do so, it was nice to get a run out and nice to win a game,”Wood said after England clinched a four-wicket victory to seal the three match series. “First game back, a wicket always settles you down a bit. A bit of nerves, but I enjoyed it. They didn’t announce the team until we got here today, anticipation is more nerve-wracking, when you get on the field it’s OK.” With the final match of the series to come in Southampton tomorrow, England can wrap a second straight clean sweep. – Reuters/AFP

Hamilton offered F1 seat to Vesti

“But to be standing completely still and not actually driving, I was a bit afraid to do that. And I really wanted to continue learning and building, adding bricks to the foundation I’ve already created.” It has been a very tough start to life at Ferrari for the former world champion – sitting sixth in the standings and already 115 points behind leader Oscar Piastri after only nine races. He’ll be desperate for an upturn in performance when the F1 paddock heads to Montreal for the Canadian Grand Prix this weekend. – Express Newspapers

Vesti could have been given a full-time F1 drive before the 2024 season, having been linked to Williams. But the Grove-based outfit instead kept their faith in Logan Sargeant, sending the Dane to compete in the European Le Mans Series instead. However, he was not deterred by the setback. “My focus is F1,” Vesti told Formula Scout . “That’s very clear also with Mercedes as a reserve driver this year.

Bahrain this season in place of Russell. And during last season, Vesti was offered a chance of a drive from Hamilton at the Canadian GP, albeit a tongue-in-cheek proposal. Montreal’s weather prospects were gloomy with forecasts of rain, but what unfolded was an extreme hailstorm before FP1. The conditions certainly didn’t give Hamilton a thrill, and he jokingly offered up his drive to Vesti ahead of FP1.