New Delhi [India], June 9 (ANI): South Africa will be aiming for their first-ever world title in international cricket history, as they take on Australia in the final of the ICC World Test Championship at Lord’s from June 11. The ongoing cycle has witnessed plenty of youngsters rise to the occasion and make a name for themselves with some standout performances.
Batting stars like Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Tony de Zorzi, all-rounders Marco Jansen and Wiaan Mulder represent the next generation of Proteas cricket.
-Ryan Rickelton
During this cycle, the 28-year-old Rickelton has played six Tests, scoring 451 runs in nine innings at an average of 56.37, with two centuries. His standout knock came against Pakistan, a masterclass of 259 of 343 balls, with 30 fours and three sixes at Cape Town in January, which earned him a ‘Player of the Match’ award. He could be opening the batting with Aiden Markram.
-Tristan Stubbs
This 24-year-old is an epitome of versatility. A fiery finisher in T20 cricket for Sunrisers Eastern Cape (SEC) and Delhi Capitals (DC) in the SA20 and Indian Premier League (IPL), Stubbs is showing signs of being a future top-order great at number three. In this cycle, he has made 500 runs in nine Tests and 16 innings, averaging 33.33.
While he has thrown away his wicket after solid starts sometimes, Stubbs has still displayed flashes of temperament required to succeed in Tests, having made two centuries and a fifty, with his best score of 122. He has scored centuries against Bangladesh (away) and Sri Lanka (at home).
-Tony De Zorzi
The 27-year-old is still in his early days as a Test cricketer, and his career so far has been a mix of a few big scores, plenty of promising but unfulfilled starts and some low scores. In nine Tests this cycle, he has made 486 runs in 16 innings across nine matches at an average of 30.37, with a century and fifty each.
His best knock is a commanding 177 against Bangladesh in 269 balls, laced with 12 fours and four sixes at Chattogram last year. This earned him a ‘Player of the Match’ honour in a winning effort.
-Marco Jansen
The lanky, pace-bowling all-rounder is next in line for all-round greatness after years of brilliant service by Shaun Pollock and Jacques Kallis. In six matches and nine innings during this cycle, he has made 200 runs at an average of 28.57, with a strike rate of almost 70, with two half-centuries.
His best score is 84 against India at Centurion. This knock in 147 balls left him as the last man standing against Asian giants, setting them up for an innings defeat.
He also took 29 scalps at an average of 20.82, with an economy rate of 3.76, best figures of 7/13. These seven wickets came against Sri Lanka at Durban last year, bundling them out for just 42 runs. In the same match, he took 4/73 in the second innings to guide the Proteas to a 233 win, walking out with 11 wickets and POTM honours.
-Wiaan Mulder
Mulder, 27, has established himself as a cricketer of great utility for the Proteas during these six Tests of the WTC cycle 2023-25, scoring 263 runs at an average of 52.60 in eight innings, with a century and fifty each, while also taking 11 wickets at an average of 24.00 with best figures of 4/32.
His defining moment was a 105* run knock in 150 balls against Bangladesh at Chattogram, which came in a winning effort.
Another career-defining performance came against West Indies at Providence, sealing the series win for his side with six wickets in the match, including a spell of 4/32 to leave WI short of a lead and also scoring a resilient 34 in an 85-run stand with Kyle Verreynne to set the hosts a target of 263 runs which was going to be tough on a testing surface. He got the POTM award for this.
South Africa squad: Tony de Zorzi, Ryan Rickelton, Aiden Markram, Temba Bavuma (c), David Bedingham, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne, Wiaan Mulder, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Dane Paterson, Keshav Maharaj, Senuran Muthusamy. (ANI)
