Mitchell Starc’s Steady Fifty: A Classic Knock Under Pressure at Lord’s – Fans Salute Aussie Tail for Standing Strong Against South Africa in WTC Final

Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood showed great fight on the third morning of the World Test Championship Final at Lord’s, frustrating South Africa with a gutsy last-wicket stand of 59 runs. Their partnership helped Australia stretch their second innings total to 207 and set a tough target of 282.

Australia started the day at 144 for 8. Nathan Lyon didn’t last long and was trapped LBW by Kagiso Rabada in just the second over of the morning. When Hazlewood walked in, South Africa would have expected to wrap things up quickly. But Starc and Hazlewood had other plans.

The pair battled hard and stayed at the crease for almost two hours. The pitch had eased up a bit, and the sun was out, making batting easier than the first two days. Starc, who was on 14 overnight, took full advantage of the conditions. He played with great patience and slowly built his innings. He reached a well-deserved half-century from 132 balls.

Just before lunch, Marco Jansen came back to bowl and got an edge off Starc’s bat, but the ball flew over the slips for four. That shot not only brought up Starc’s fifty but also raised the fifty-run partnership for the last wicket. It was Starc’s eighth Test fifty from the No. 9 position or lower the most by any tailender in Test history.

With no breakthrough in sight, South African captain Temba Bavuma turned to part-time bowler Aiden Markram. The move paid off. After bowling a tight first over, Markram got Hazlewood out for 17 from 53 balls in his second over, ending Australia’s innings.

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Twitter reactions after Strac Scored 50 in WTC Final