Proteas Silence Critics as South Africa’s Head Coach Conrad Dismisses 'Big Three' Myth After WTC Triumph

South Africa scripted history at Lord’s last week, lifting the ICC World Test Championship title after defeating Australia by seven wickets in a gripping finale. It marked the end of a 27-year-long wait for an ICC title—the last coming in 1998 during the ICC KnockOut Trophy.

The victory was sealed in emphatic fashion, as Aiden Markram and Temba Bavuma starred in a fourth-innings chase of 280. Markram delivered a masterful knock of 136 under pressure, anchoring the innings and building a match-winning 147-run partnership with Bavuma, who contributed 66. Their efforts ensured South Africa’s comeback after a dismal first innings where they were bowled out for just 138.

Kagiso Rabada led the bowling attack with characteristic venom, taking a total of nine wickets across both innings, rattling the Australian batting order and setting up the platform for the historic win.

Despite their dominant display, South Africa’s path to the WTC final had come under scrutiny, with critics pointing out that the Proteas hadn’t faced any of the  'Big Three'—India, England, or Australia—in the lead-up to the summit clash. Head coach Shukri Conrad, however, firmly pushed back against that narrative while talikng to the media he stated .

“We always felt that we belonged. We never even felt that we were underdogs in any of this. There’s never a conversation that happened in any of our team talks,” Conrad said.

“Everybody dubbed Australia as the huge favourites, probably on the back of the experience more than anything else... We’re one of the main cricket teams in the world and like I said also we create our own reality,” he added.

Refuting the idea of an elite trio dominating the Test arena, Conrad continued: “They [the three teams] create their own realities, and unfortunately, none of them are [Test] champions. We are the Test champions now, so I feel absolutely nothing about the top three. I don’t believe that there is a top three.”

The win not only ended South Africa’s ICC trophy drought but also reaffirmed their standing as a formidable force in world cricket. As they hoisted the Test mace, it wasn’t just a trophy—it was a statement.