NEW DELHI: The South African team on Sunday claimed their maiden World Test Championship Final spot after securing a thrilling two-wicket win over Pakistan in the Boxing Day Test in Centurion.
Tail-enders Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen turned out to be the unlikely heroes with the bat as they hung in against a relentless Mohammad Abbas for a tense win.
With a 1-0 lead in the the two-Test series, the Proteas confirmed a top two finish in the WTC standings, making the cut for the finale scheduled for next year at Lord’s.
Having secured a 2-0 win over Sri Lanka in the previous series, Temba Bavuma and Co. were already at the top in the standings and the win over Pakistan on Sunday boosted their percentage points further to 66.67%.
With 7 wins in 11 Tests, Proteas have confirmed a WTC Final berth with a Test to play in their cycle.
Here’s a look at how South Africa made it to the WTC Final:
The Proteas began this WTC cycle with a 1-1 drawn series against India at home. They won the opener by an innings and 32 runs in Centurion but then lost the Cape Town game by 7 wickets.
South Africa were then blanked 2-0 in New Zealand, losing the matches in Mount Maunganui and Hamilton.
But they then beat West Indies in a two-Test away series 1-0. After having drawn the first game in Port of Spain, the Proteas won by 40 runs in Providence for a memorable away series win.
They then blanked Bangladesh 2-0, winning matches in Mirpur and Chattogram by 7 wickets and an innings and 273 runs respectively.
Returning back home, Bavuma and Co. won the two Tests against Sri Lanka in Durban and Gqeberha to leapfrog to the top spot in WTC standings.
With the Pakistan win on Sunday, a WTC Final spot for the Proteas got confirmed.