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"They Were Deserving Champions": Cummins Praises Bavuma And His Men After WTC Final

Akshita Patel

 Pat Cummins after Australia lose WTC 2025 final to South Africa [Source: @CricCrazyJohns/X.com] Pat Cummins after Australia lose WTC 2025 final to South Africa [Source: @CricCrazyJohns/X.com]

Australian captain Pat Cummins congratulated South Africa for winning the WTC 2025 Final. In a post-game interview, the losing captain stated that the Proteas fought hard and left no room for the Aussies to dominate and lead.

South Africa snapped out of their 27-year-long ICC title drought to win the ICC World Test Championship 2025 title. They beat defending champions Australia by 5 wickets in what turned out to be a historic chase.

Aiden Markram (136) and skipper Temba Bavuma (66) knitted a 147-run partnership to chase down 282 runs and script history.

Pat Cummins Reacts To Australia's Defeat In WTC Final

After Australia’s tough loss to South Africa in the WTC 2025 Final at Lord’s, skipper Pat Cummins didn’t hold back. Speaking candidly post-match, Cummins admitted his team fell short despite a strong two-year campaign that brought them to the final. 

 "Congratulations to Temba & his team, deserving champions, they played some fantastic cricket. Things can change pretty quickly. But unfortunately, this was a bridge too far. There are always a few things. Having a decent first-innings lead, you want to bat the opposition out," Cummins remarked.

Maybe we would have loved to play one more session to get us a decent total. They didn't give us the chance. I think a bit of both. Again, it's wonderful two years. Boys worked really hard to get us here. It was tough batting when the ball was darting all around," Cummins added.

Cummins Praises Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood

He also praised the spirited partnership between Starc and Hazlewood, even if it came too late. 

"You were clapping each run. But at the same time, you know that the wicket was getting flat. Things can change quickly here but unfortunately, it didn't happen. I think we gave every chance. Lyon bowled really well. He looked threatening and Aiden and Temba played beautifully," he added.

Despite the loss, Cummins applauded his side’s effort and Nathan Lyon’s bowling, while reserving special praise for Markram and Bavuma’s resilience.

"South Africa showed why they are in the finals. All four days, they kept themselves in the game and whenever they got a sniff, they pounced on the opportunity. A big congratulations to South Africa. Would have preferred The Oval (laughs). Test cricket is the pinnacle. You work hard for two years to get here. One-game shoot-off. But a great spectacle for everyone," the skipper concluded.

Australia, who won the previous WTC 2023 Final against India, failed to defend their title as South Africa were crowned third WTC champions after New Zealand and Australia.