South Africa captain Temba Bavuma has called out Pat Cummins-led Australia for using the “chokers” tag in their second innings of the World Test Championship (WTC) final at Lord’s.“While we were batting, we could hear the Aussies using that dreaded word: choke,” Bavuma told reporters after the match.“We came in with a lot of belief and a lot of doubters. We got ourselves into the final, and there were doubters as to the route we took. This win squashes that. Here’s an opportunity for us as a nation, divided as we are, to unite.”Bavuma said he hoped winning the mace for best Test nation would lift the profile of Test cricket in South Africa, where no Test matches are scheduled for the upcoming 2025–26 home season.“We want to play more Test cricket,” he said. “We want to play against the bigger nations. So I think this will go a long way in making us a lot more attractive — and also the so-called smaller nations.”Bavuma, the first Black African specialist batsman to play Test cricket for the Proteas, said his side had been inspired by South Africa’s Springboks, who have won four Rugby World Cups — including the two most recent tournaments.
“This is special for this group, special for myself, for the country,” Bavuma told reporters.“I have watched the rugby guys, and the biggest thing I admire about them is the way, with their success, they have embraced what being South African actually means.“As South Africans, we are unique in a lot of ways. Our present and future are shaped by our past, and the way they (the Springboks) have gone about things has really captured the hearts of everyone. It’s something we’ve spoken about — to try and do something special.”The captain said his players wanted to achieve the consistent success of earlier South African Test teams, in particular the sides that held the Test mace for three years between 2013 and 2015, as a result of topping the rankings before the introduction of a Test final.“We’ve said as a team we would like to judge ourselves after three or four years as a group,” said Bavuma. “We would like to emulate what (former captain) Graeme (Smith) and his team did.”
