WTC Final, AUS vs SA: Matthew Hayden Compares Australian Trio To McGrath, Brett Lee And Gillespie: ‘Might Just Be Australia’s Best-ever Pace Attack’

Australia displayed a splendid bowling performance in the World Test Championship final, bowling out South Africa for just 138 in the 1st innings. The Aussies were bowled out for a paltry 212 runs at the Lord’s Cricket Stadium.

Captain Pat Cummins led from the front as he rattled the South Africa batting lineup with his controlled and measured line and length in the WTC final. The Aussie captain had a six-wicket haul while Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc shared three wickets among them.

Despite the low scores, the defending champions have looked more purposeful and now Matthew Hayden has claimed the current Australian bowling trio is better than Glenn McGrath, Brett Lee and Jason Gillespie. As quoted by News18, the former Australian opener said, “The trio of Hazlewood, Cummins, and Starc might just be Australia’s best-ever pace attack—even better than McGrath, Gillespie, and Lee—because they’ve bowled more together, in more combinations. Add Nathan Lyon to the mix, and it’s an ‘awesome foursome.’ Australia did well to pull ahead despite pressure. South Africa fought back hard, making this a seesaw contest. It’s been a fantastic Test match so far, and Day 3 promises more drama.”

Riding on Mitchell Starc’s brilliant half-century, Australia posted 207 runs, leaving the Proteas a target of 282 runs. The pair of Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi ran through their opponents, leaving them reeling at 73/7. But Alex Carey and Starc stood still and looked determined to grind from the surface, which seems to have lost all its juice. Starc rode on his luck and went on to score a fighting 58 while Carey was dismissed for 43. All the stakes will now be on the Proteas batters as the pitch has stopped offering assistance to the fast bowlers and it remains to be seen how Australia plan to use the new ball.