The South Africans savour their victory over Australia at Lord’s. They take pictures with their families, make phone calls and sign souvenirs. The players have a lap around the ground and there’s plenty of hugging. It’s been 27 years since the Proteas won an ICC trophy and, despite their defeat of India in the 2025 WTC final, this win is a huge boost for them.
The ICC approved the World Test Championship in 2010, with the inaugural tournament set for 2013 (which was eventually cancelled) and Lord’s hosting the final. The idea is that the 10 full members of the ICC would play in an initial league stage over four years and then the top four would go through to a knock out stage to decide a Test cricket champion.
This format has been criticised because it does not require all teams to face each other or play the same number of matches. It also does not force nations to host each other, something that would improve the quality of the games.
There is also a concern that it will only lead to endless series between India, England and Australia, with other nations being further marginalised. In addition, it is not clear how the system will be policed and there are concerns that it may not even result in better Test cricket. The WTC should be reviewed. One suggestion is to double the length of the qualifying cycle – something Booth wants — and require all countries to play each other, home and away, over five-Test series.