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Key Points

Australia's World Test Championship Final started dramatically with a challenging first session against South African pace attack. Steve Smith and Beau Webster dramatically turned the match around with composed batting and crucial half-centuries. Smith particularly impressed by setting a new record for most runs by a visiting batsman at Lord's. Their 79-run partnership helped Australia recover and reach a competitive 190/5 by day's end.

Key Points: Smith Webster Rescue Australia in WTC Final at Lord's

  • Smith sets Lord's record with 66 runs
  • Webster survives early challenges
  • Australia recovers from tough first session
  • Fifties from Smith and Webster stabilize innings
2 min read

WTC Final: Fifties by Steve Smith and Beau Webster help Australia reach 190/5

Steve Smith and Beau Webster counter South African bowling, lift Australia to 190/5 on Day One of World Test Championship Final

"Smith and Webster rotated the strike with ease - Match Commentary"

London, June 11

Steve Smith and Beau Webster helped Australia bounce back from an awful first session by hitting half-centuries each and helped the side reach 190/5 in 50 overs on Day One of the World Test Championship Final at the Lord's Cricket Ground here on Wednesday.

As compared to being blown away in the first session by the pace of Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen, Smith and Webster rotated the strike with ease, scored plenty of boundaries while sharing a 79-run stand, and helped Australia to force their way back into the match.

While Smith made 66 off 112 balls, laced with ten boundaries, and established a new record for the most runs scored by a visiting batter in Tests at the iconic venue, Webster overcame early struggles to be unbeaten on 55 off 76 balls.

The start of the session saw Smith, batting with an outside the leg-stump stance and a trademark exaggerated back-and-across movement, steal three quick boundaries off Rabada and Jansen. But Webster was all at sea, struggling to survive in tough conditions. With luck on his side, Webster survived twice in as many overs.

On four, he was first beaten on the outside edge and trapped lbw by Marco Jansen, but ball tracking showed the umpire's call on impact. Then, against Rabada on eight, Webster was clearly lbw, but with South Africa fearing it was an inside edge, they didn't take the review. To their dismay, replays showed the ball hitting stumps and that it would have been out if South Africa had taken the review.

Smith eventually got his fifty in 76 balls by slashing Rabada through backward point for four, before he and a now-settled Webster took boundaries off Lungi Ngidi and Keshav Maharaj.

But in a bid to smack Aiden Markram through covers, Smith could only get a healthy outside edge and was caught by first slip on his third attempt. Though Webster was living dangerously, he got his second Test fifty off 69 deliveries and ensured Australia had a bright second session after a gloomy first session.

Brief scores:

Australia 190/5 in 50 overs (Steve Smith 66, Beau Webster 55 not out; Kagiso Rabada 2-35, Marco Jansen 2-49) against South Africa

- IANS

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Reader Comments

R
Rahul K.
Smith proving once again why he's the best test batsman in the world! That back-and-across movement is pure class. Hope India takes notes before our next tour to England 🇮🇳🏏
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Priya M.
Webster got so lucky with those LBW decisions! South Africa will regret not taking that review. Shows how crucial DRS is in modern cricket. BCCI should improve our domestic umpiring standards too.
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Arjun S.
Typical Smith innings - grinding the bowlers down. But honestly, the real test will be when they face Bumrah and Shami in the next cycle! Our pace attack is much better than SA's currently.
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Sneha R.
Watching this match makes me miss the India-Australia rivalry! When will we get another Border-Gavaskar series? These WTC finals are great but nothing beats a proper 5-test series between top teams.
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Vikram J.
That session showed why test cricket is the real deal! Swing, seam, survival, then counterattack. T20s can never match this drama. Hope ICC doesn't neglect test cricket in favor of shorter formats.
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Neha P.
Interesting to see Webster's struggle and then recovery. Reminds me of how our own youngsters like Gill and Iyer have grown through tough overseas tours. Patience is key in test cricket!

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