Nathan Lyon discussed the problems Australia faces in retaining their Test crown in the World Test Championship final of the 2023-25 cycle against South Africa at Lord’s next week. The top spinner claimed the Proteas have world-class hitters and outstanding bowlers. He expected the one-off Test to be a new challenge due to the neutral conditions and Dukes ball.
The world-class spinner, who was at the Australian training camp in Beckenham on Thursday, predicted a fight of two of the world’s top bowling attacks, making it difficult for the hitters.
“South Africa has some world-class hitters and some great bowlers, so it will be a good test, and it is clearly a one-off Test match. It will be a different task, with foreign circumstances and the Dukes ball. It’s going to be two of the top bowling attacks battling it out, which is exciting, so it’ll be a terrific challenge for all batsmen,” Lyon said.
David Bedingham is a special player: Nathan Lyon
The right-arm spinner mentioned that batters like Aiden Markram, Ryan Rickelton, and David Bedingham could pose a threat to the Australian attack. Lyon felt the need to enjoy the game and do the basics right.
“They’ve got some class players, as I said, with the likes of Aiden Markram, Rickelton at the top of the order there, they’re class players, there’s no point in hiding behind that fact either. I played against Bedingham last year here in county cricket, and he’s a special player, so at the end of the day it’s going to be guys who do the basics…and enjoy the pressure moments,” Lyon added.
South Africa will play their maiden WTC final and have a tough challenge ahead to beat the defending champions. Australia is only the second team to play the WTC Final twice, after India. In 2023, they beat India to win their maiden Test mace, the defence of which will begin from June 11.
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