Disastrous start: 14 wickets fell on the first day – bowlers shine in the World Test Championship final

by

The batting of both the teams fell apart on the first day at Lord’s, Rabada and Starc dominated

Ten wickets fell on the first day

14 wickets fell on the first day – this sentence tells the story of the whole day itself. The first day of the World Test Championship Final 2025 was very thrilling and surprising for cricket lovers. As soon as the game started, the bowlers made their intentions clear from that very moment that this match will be won with the ball, not with the bat.

In this match being played between Australia and South Africa, a total of 14 wickets fell on the first day itself, due to which it is not difficult to guess whether this Test final will complete five days or not. In this match held at the historic Lord’s ground in England, the mood of the weather was also in favor of the bowlers.

Rabada’s speed and Starc’s start

Australia batted first and were bowled out for 212 runs. Although the start was not good, Steven Smith and Beau Webster tried to strengthen the team. But in the end, confirming 14 wickets fell on the first day, the entire team lost the last five wickets in 35 balls.

Kagiso Rabada’s performance was excellent. He took 5 wickets and registered his name on the Lord’s Honors Board for the second time. On the other hand, Mitchell Starc also made a great start and clean bowled Aiden Markram in the very first over.

Failure of Australian top order

Australia’s new opening pair – Marnus Labuschagne and Usman Khawaja – came under pressure in the initial balls itself. Khawaja was dismissed without opening the account and Labuschagne also soon fell prey to Marco Jansen’s short ball. Cameron Green also could not contribute much with the bat.

Steven Smith certainly played an important innings of 66 runs and improved his record at Lord’s. He scored 11 runs in one over of Rabada and became the first foreign batsman to play on this ground against India, England and now South Africa.

Webster’s struggle and Carey’s lapse

Beau Webster did struggle in his first Lord’s innings but scored 72 runs to take the team to a respectable score. However, he was lucky many times – once he was saved from being dismissed due to not taking DRS. But in the end, Carey also lost his wicket while playing reverse sweep and then the rest of the batsmen fell like a pack of cards.

South Africa also had a disappointing start

When South Africa came out to bat, the script of 14 wickets fell on the first day was written even more strongly. Markram was out in the very first over, and then Rickelton, Mulder and Stubbs also returned to the pavilion after getting out in quick succession.

Starc, Cummins and Hazlewood – all three bowlers put South Africa in deep trouble by taking one wicket each. Wiaan Mulder scored only 6 runs off 44 balls and along with captain Temba Bavuma, could take the team to just 43 runs.

Cloudy conditions and bowling friendly pitch

The first day started with heavy clouds and floodlights, which gave extra help to the bowlers. Australia bowled the first three overs maiden – which happened for the first time since 2020 – and the script of 14 wickets fell on the first day came true throughout the day.

Match moving towards the result

The first day of this Test match has indicated that the result can come soon. With the presence of world class bowlers like Rabada and Starc and the continuous mistakes of the batsmen, it is difficult to say whether this match will be able to stretch till the fourth or fifth day.

Conclusion

The World Test Championship final started very dramatically at the historic ground of Lord’s. The fall of 14 wickets on the first day itself shows the ability of the bowlers and the challenges of the batsmen. The first day of the final match was completely in the name of the bowlers and justifies the fact that 14 wickets fell on the first day.

Now it will be interesting to see whether South Africa will be able to make a comeback or Australia will strengthen its hold. Whatever the case may be, this match has now become more interesting for cricket fans.

Also Read : Dhoni, Hayden, Taylor, Mir among latest ICC Hall of Fame inductees 

Leave a Comment