Coming into the World Test Championship (WTC) final, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon had 1508 Test wickets among them. The quartet forms Australia’s potent force when it comes to turning a Test match on its head.
At Lord’s on Thursday, Cummins showed his true self with another inspirational spell that brought Australia back into the final after a timid opening day with the bat.
Cummins got a standing ovation as he walked off with 6/28, which helped him join the 300-wicket club. It was an extraordinary spell as he broke the backbone of South Africa’s middle order.
Five of South Africa’s six wickets that fell on Thursday went to Cummins, while the other was a run-out. South Africa lost five wickets for 12 runs after Temba Bavuma and David Bedingham’s 64-run partnership in the first session had revived their hopes of
a turnaround.
The Australia captain’s probing line was backed by some terrific fielding by his teammates which contributed to South Africa’s downfall. Cummins’ spell overshadowed Kagiso Rabada’s good work on the opening day which provided South Africa with a glimmer of hope.
Cummins was brutal too as he tested his good mate Rabada twice with pace and bounce.
The first blow was to the shoulder and the second to his helmet, which necessitated a visit from the physio. Rabada didn’t flinch but looked a bit rattled. He fell victim to a stunning catch from Beau Webster in Cummins’ next over for his 300th wicket.
Cummins has also been a success story for fast-bowler captains. One WTC title and an ODI World Cup are already in his bag. But he is not
done yet and the promise of a few more ICC titles looks closer to reality.
His best? It seems that place is already taken. “The ODI World Cup of 2023 is going to be hard to top,” Cummins had said on the eve of the
WTC final.
He has never fled from challenges and it showed during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia earlier this year. Adding another mace will be an attestation of his skilful manoeuvring and top-notch leadership qualities.