London, June 11 (IANS) Jay Shah, the Chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC), said it was a moment of privilege for him to ring the bell at the historic Lord’s Cricket Ground before the start of the 2025 World Test Championship Final between Australia and South Africa.

In their bid to retain the mace they won at The Oval in June 2023 after beating India by 209 runs, Australia were reduced to 67/4 in 23.2 overs by South Africa at lunch on the first day of the match. This is also the first time that Lord’s is hosting an ICC World Test Championship Final.

“A privilege to ring the bell at the historic Lord’s ground before the start of play on day one of the @icc World Test Championship final between @ProteasMenCSA and @CricketAus,” wrote Shah on his ‘X’ account on Wednesday.

Australia finished second in the league table during the 2023-25 WTC cycle, having claimed 67.54 points percentage. South Africa, meanwhile, entered the WTC final on the back of seven consecutive Test victories and finished at the top of the points table with 69.44 points percentage.

South Africa confirmed their spot in the WTC Final by holding off a fightback from Pakistan to seal a thrilling two-wicket win in Centurion in December 2024, while Australia qualified courtesy of a commanding six-wicket victory over India in Sydney in January this year.

The winner of the WTC 2023-25 cycle will receive USD 3.6 million, which is a significant increase from the USD 1.6 million awarded in both 2021 and 2023 editions, while the runners-up will earn USD 2.16 million, up from USD 800,000.

The historic Lord’s has also become the third England venue to host the WTC finals after the Rose Bowl in Southampton (2021) and The Oval in London (2023). There is also a reserve day in place on June 16, provided any playing time was lost during the regular five days of the one-off title clash.

–IANS

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