South Africa pacer Kagiso Rabada hailed his side’s ICC World Test Championship Final 2025 victory over Australia as a moment he will never forget.
Rabada took nine wickets in the match at Lord’s, rising to the occasion and thriving on his status as the leader of the pace attack.
He moved past Allan Donald into fourth on South Africa’s all-time list of Test wicket-takers, while he retains the highest strike rate (38.9) of any bowler with more than 150 scalps to his name.
But while his individual display was one to savour, this was a team triumph for the Proteas and Rabada was quick to share the credit among his fellow history-makers.
“I don’t see myself as a star,” he said. “I see myself as someone willing to work, give my blood for this team and continue working hard and improving.
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“That’s me as a cricketer, always wanting to improve and playing for the badge with a lot of pride. That’s the way I’d like to see everyone play.
“Every game I play, I’m looking to get wickets. I’m not going to go into the game thinking ‘I need to get seven wickets for us to win’, I look at it as an opportunity to get as many wickets as I can to help the team.
“In saying that, I know I won’t do it alone and I back all the players in the team. You are playing for South Africa for a reason, it’s not by chance.
“We are a fairly inexperienced team who got put together about a year ago, we have not been with each other for a long time, and we have gone on and produced this. I’ll never forget this in my life, none of the boys will forget this.”
Rabada set the tone on the opening morning of the Final, removing Usman Khawaja and Cameron Green in the same over – later repeating the trick in the second innings.
His first innings figures of five for 51 saw him become just the second player in history to have his name on the honours boards in both the home and away dressing rooms at Lord’s, following batter Gordon Greenidge, and he followed up with four more second time around.
“There are normally two voices in your head – one that doubts and one that believes. That is the one we keep feeding, especially in big moments like this, the World Test Championship Final. That is why you saw the performances you saw. It is testament to our team this season.”
