James Anderson, the renowned England pacer, has unveiled his combined playing XI for the 2025 World Test Championship (WTC) Final, which will be held at Lord’s Cricket Ground in London from June 11 to 15. South Africa will take on Australia in the Ultimate Test.
Anderson chose Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne, both from Australia, to open the innings. Interestingly, he ranked South Africa’s Aiden Markram third, preferring him to Australian all-rounder Cameron Green.
The middle order includes seasoned Australian hitters Steve Smith and Travis Head, as well as wicketkeeper Alex Carey. South African batsman Temba Bavuma, Tristan Stubbs, and wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne were all left out. Anderson chose South African Wiaan Mulder over Australian Beau Webster for the all-rounder slot.
Anderson made a brave move in the bowling department, excluding Mitchell Starc while including South Africa’s pace man Kagiso Rabada. He kept the seasoned Australian trio of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, and Nathan Lyon, but dropped Proteas bowlers Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, and Dane Paterson.
Notably, only three South Africans made it into Anderson’s XI, with the England veteran conceding that Australians controlled his team.
“It’s a lot of Aussies in there. I don’t like it at all,” said Anderson to Cricket District on Instagram.
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South Africa is on the verge of overcoming its long ICC championship drought, having not won a worldwide trophy since the 1998 ICC Knockout Trophy. They finished sixth in the first WTC cycle and just missed out on the second. They won the 2023-25 WTC points standings, losing only three tests. Australia, on the other side, hopes to defend their World Championship crown after winning the last event. If they win, they will become the first two-time WTC champions.
Rabada against Smith will determine the game: Anderson
Anderson suggested that the match between Kagiso Rabada and Steve Smith might decide the game. He regarded Rabada as one of his favourite bowlers to watch and Smith as one of the world’s best batsmen. Anderson voiced his excitement for the matchup between the two, implying that the duel may decide the game’s fate.
“The main one for me will be Rabada versus Steve Smith, and I believe it will be a really nice, exciting duel. Steve Smith is one of the best batters in the world, and Kagiso Rabada is one of my favourite bowlers to watch. I believe he possesses a number of qualities that compel me to watch him on television. “He’s a fantastic player, and I’m really looking forward to that battle,” Anderson told ICC.
James Anderson combined playing XI:
Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Aiden Markram, Steve Smith, Alex Carey, Wiaan Mulder, Pat Cummins, Kagiso Rabada, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.
