World Test Championship: South Africa Announced Squad For The Final, Temba Bavuma To Lead

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India] May 13: South Africa have announced a strong 15-member squad for the upcoming World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia, set to begin at the Lord’s Cricket Ground on June 11. The Proteas have been bolstered by the return of Lungi Ngidi, who had missed out on most of the home summer season due to a groin injury. Ngidi is currently a part of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) squad for the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025.

Temba Bavuma will lead the side in its first-ever WTC final. Earlier, South Africa reached the final with a point percentage of 69.44. The Proteas have made just two changes to their squad for the last Test series against Pakistan. Youngster Kwena Maphaka has been replaced by Lungi Ndigi, while top-order batter Matthew Breetzke has also been dropped from the squad.

The squad will assemble In Arundel on May 31 and play a warm-up match against Zimbabwe from June 3 to 6 before heading to London on June 7. The IPL final will be played on June 3 hence Corbin Bosch (Mumbai Indians), Marco Jansen (Punjab Kings), Aiden Markram (Lucknow Super Giants), Lungi Ngidi (RCB), Kagiso Rabada (Gujarat Titans) and Tristan Stubbs (Delhi Capitals) are all part of the ongoing IPL and some of the stars risk missing out on the warm-up match against Zimbabwe if they stay for the entirety of the IPL.

However, Cricket South Africa (CSA) is yet to provide clarity on whether the players who have been named in the WTC final squad, will be available for the IPL playoffs or not.

“Firstly, I want to congratulate each of the players selected for this squad. It is a special moment for this group to contest the WTC Final. Over the past 18 months, we’ve worked hard to build a competitive red-ball unit, and this achievement reflects that progress,” head coach Shukri Conrad said in an official statement.

“A key part of our success has been consistency in selection, and we’ve stuck with the core group of players who have been part of this WTC cycle. We’ve selected a balanced squad for the conditions we expect at Lord’s. I’m particularly pleased to welcome Lungi back in the side. He’s put in the work and offers us an experienced option with the ball,” he added.

Australia also announce squad for the WTC final

Earlier in the day, Australia had also confirmed their squad for the WTC final. The defending champions named a full-strength squad. All-rounder Cameron Green also made a return having successfully recovered from an injury.

South Africa squad for WTC final against Australia:

Temba Bavuma ©, 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, and Kyle Verreynne.

Australia squad for WTC final and West Indies tour: Pat Cummins ©, 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.