New Delhi: South Africa created history by winning the ICC World Test Championship Final against Australia at Lord’s. A stellar century by Aiden Markram guided South Africa to a memorable five-wicket victory in the final. The Proteas secured their first senior men's ICC trophy since 1998.

Needing just 69 runs on the fourth morning to claim the title, South Africa chased down the target with relative ease. Wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne struck the winning runs, sealing a long-awaited ICC triumph for the Proteas.

Markram was the standout performer, scoring a brilliant 136 in a match where the ball largely dominated the bat. He was dismissed with just six runs remaining, but his composed innings had already swung the game decisively in South Africa’s favour.

Skipper Temba Bavuma (66) was dismissed early on the final day by Australian captain Pat Cummins, and Tristan Stubbs (8) fell to Mitchell Starc when 41 runs were still needed. However, Markram held firm, showing patience and precision to guide his side within touching distance of the target.

His calm approach remained unchanged despite the setbacks, and although he was eventually dismissed by Josh Hazlewood just before the finish line, Markram walked off to a standing ovation from the Lord’s crowd.

While Markram earned accolades for his defining innings, South Africa’s win was a team effort. Fast bowler Kagiso Rabada was instrumental, claiming nine wickets across both innings. Rabada and Markram—who were part of South Africa’s 2014 ICC U-19 World Cup-winning squad—played key roles in this long-awaited senior-level success.

The win also comes as redemption for South Africa, who narrowly missed out on victory in the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup final against India.

Despite a few tense moments in the final innings, the Proteas held their nerve to chase down 282 and end their ICC title drought in emphatic fashion.

Australia’s experienced bowling attack was relentless throughout the match, but it took an innings of a lifetime from Markram to finally break South Africa’s long-standing jinx in global ICC events—sealing the WTC25 mace in what is now being hailed as the "Ultimate Test."

South Africa XI: 1. Aiden Markram, 2. Ryan Rickelton, 3. Wiaan Mulder, 4. Temba Bavuma (c), 5. Tristan Stubbs, 6. David Bedingham, 7. Kyle Verreynne (wk), 8. Marco Jansen, 9. Keshav Maharaj, 10. Kagiso Rabada, 11. Lungi Ngidi

Australia XI: 1. Usman Khawaja, 2. Marnus Labuschagne, 3. Cameron Green, 4. Steve Smith, 5. Travis Head, 6. Beau Webster, 7. Alex Carey (wk), 8. Pat Cummins (c), 9. Mitchell Starc, 10. Nathan Lyon, 11. Josh Hazlewood