Kagiso Rabada warns Australia ahead of WTC Final: 'We know how to beat them'

After South Africa's dominant 10-wicket victory over Pakistan in Cape Town, securing a series sweep, Kagiso Rabada shared his thoughts. The South African fast bowler said the team is already preparing for their expected clash against Australia in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final at Lord's, starting on June 11. Rabada confidently stated that the Proteas are ready to take on the challenge against their longtime rivals.

Rabada discussed in the post-match talk on SuperSport, "how excited everyone gets for something incredibly massive, such as the World Test Championship final. We know South Africa and Australia always have an intense competition since their cricket styles are essentially the same. We both try our best, and I know Australia will bring their quality approach. But, they've achieved the skills to take them down".

The Proteas are the table toppers for the World Test Championship cycle because they earned 69.44% of the points and Australia is in second place. In their last match, they beat Pakistan, making it their seventh win in a row. Rabada was very important in that game because he took six wickets.

Kagiso Rabada said, "South Africa Vs Australia has always been an intense rivalry. They're going to come hard at us, but we also know how to beat them. 100% Test cricket is still alive. It's our best format that we've been playing right now". pic.twitter.com/eZL30mWAYb

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) January 7, 2025

Shukri Conrad, the coach for South Africa, mentioned they may potentially set up a pre-game camp, probably in Canterbury, if they can't have a warm-up Test. "We're thinking of having a Test match, maybe in the UK, and it could be against either Ireland or Afghanistan but only if they're free. If we can't make that happen, we're just going to go a little earlier and establish a good camp." Conrad's focus is on boosting the team's preparation work, even considering organizing a practice game in the UK.

South Africa has been performing very well in Test cricket, securing eight wins and one draw out of nine matches without a single loss, all under the Captain of Temba Bavuma. Bavuma himself has been in remarkable form, scoring two centuries and three half-centuries during a stellar home Test summer.

Coach Shukri Conrad said, "He deserves a large call for how amazing he's been this summer. The way he's stepped up and shown what he can do, it's probably him at his all-time best. There's nobody else I'd rather have as our captain".

"Test cricket is where we do our best today. If you think about all the South African legends in cricket, they were amazing at Test matches," Rabada said, adding that he's very eager, along with the rest of the team, about the major game that will happen soon. He pointed out that Test cricket has an important place in South Africa.

ALSO READ: New BCCI Secretary Directed to Drop Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli: "Must Send a Firm Message"