Former Australian captain Aaron Finch praised Pat Cummins’ leadership abilities ahead of the ICC World Test Championship final between Australia and South Africa at Lord’s on June 11. Finch highlighted Cummins’ continuous improvement as a captain both on and off the field, as Australia aims to defend their WTC mace against first-time finalists South Africa.Under Cummins’ leadership, Australia secured 13 wins in 19 Tests with only four losses, finishing second in the championship standings. His captaincy has been marked by significant achievements, including retaining the Ashes against England and securing Australia’s first Border-Gavaskar Trophy series win against India in a decade.“Pat Cummins’ captaincy is outstanding. He keeps improving day after day. He’s shown an ability to lead a team, not just on the field, but off the field. And that is a huge part of captaining an international team. Your ability to bring everything together at the right time. His partnership with Andrew McDonald, the coach, has been super for Australian cricket,” Finch said while speaking to Star Sports.Cummins has proven himself as a leader on the field, taking 73 wickets in 17 Tests at an average of over 24. His record as Test captain stands at 20 wins, seven losses, and six draws in 33 matches, achieving a win percentage of 60.60.
“I think both teams are very similarly matched with their bowling attacks. You look at Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Scott Boland, they are probably the four front runners at this stage, along with Nathan Lyon. And then you have got Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Nigidi, Marco Jansen and Keshav Maharaj. So I think they both match up so closely together, but I would give Australia just the edge, having probably played more test cricket as a bowling group in the English conditions,” Finch added.Both teams have announced their squads for the final. South Africa’s squad includes Tony de Zorzi, Ryan Rickelton, Aiden Markram, Temba Bavuma as captain, David Bedingham, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne, Wiaan Mulder, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Dane Paterson, Keshav Maharaj, and Senuran Muthusamy.Quiz: Who’s that IPL player?Australia’s squad comprises Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Alex Carey, Josh Inglis, Cameron Green, Beau Webster, Pat Cummins as captain, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Scott Boland, Nathan Lyon, and Matt Kuhnemann, with Brendan Doggett as the traveling reserve.South Africa enters the final seeking their first ICC major world title in senior cricket, while Australia looks to maintain their dominance, having already secured every major trophy in all forms of cricket.
