South Africa have now become one of the top contenders to qualify for the World Test Championship (WTC) final next year after a series win against Sri Lanka. The Proteas won the second Test against Sri Lanka by 109 runs at the St George's Park in Gqeberha to clinch the two-match series 2-0. Keshav Maharaj did the job for South Africa with a five-wicket haul in the second innings as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 238, while chasing a target of 348 runs.
Ahead of the final day of the Test, Sri Lanka needed 143 runs more to win with five wickets in hand. With skipper Dhananjaya de Silva and Kusal Mendis in midst of a good partnership, the visitors were hoping to pull off the run chase to level the series. However, the South African bowlers didn’t take much time to dismiss both the batters on day five as the Proteas were all over Sri Lanka in the second Test.
South Africa acquire 1st spot in WTC points table
Dhananjaya de Silva got out after playing a decent knock of 50(92) with seven boundaries, while Kusal Mendis scored 46(76) runs with the help of three fours and two sixes. However, none of the other batters from the lower batter could score big as Sri Lanka fell short by 109 runs. Keshav Maharaj registered figures of 5/76, while Dane Paterson and Kagisdo Rabada took two wickets each and Marco Jansen put one in his bag.
With this big win, South Africa have now reached the top of the points table in the ongoing World Test Championship (WTC) cycle from 2023 to 2025. Now, the Proteas need just one win from the upcoming two Test matches against Pakistan to qualify for their maiden WTC final at Lords from June 11 to 15 in 2025.
