Cummins answers call but victory is still to be claimed

Australia vs South Africa in World Test Championship final

- HARRY LATHAM-COYLE

The rollercoaster ride continues at Lord's, this World Test Championship final swinging sharply one way and then t'other.

The dignitaries and distinguished guests planning a weekend at the Home of Cricket will surely have to find alternative entertainment; this vehicle is careering towards a Friday finish, motoring along under the steam of an engine of fast bowlers firing on all cylinders.

It still appears likely that Pat Cummins will soon be clutching the Test mace for a second time after taking control of the contest with a captain’s spell in the afternoon, but South Africa refuse to be quelled so simply. A requirement of 218 and counting looks mightily steep given the regularity with which wickets continue to fall, yet Temba Bavuma’s men, and the contest, remain very much alive.

There will surely be more twists and turns to come, though. A rollicking, rip-roaring contest will not please the ICC moneymen and women hoping to squeeze their showpiece to five days, but it has so far provided the exhilarating entertainment befitting the occasion. 14 wickets on the first day were matched by 14 more on the second, the only period of smooth sailing amid stormy seas coming in a morning session where Australia largely toiled.

Yet cometh the hour, cometh Cummins, seemingly always the man to answer the call. Across 4.1 overs, Australia’s captain wrought a tempest to capsize the South African innings with a spell of four wickets for four runs that may yet prove pivotal in the retention of their Test title.