Australians were not happy with South Africa and the ICC when Kagiso Rabada was suspended for consuming drugs. With no clarity on the type of drug Rabada consumed, many called out the lack of transparency surrounding the ban, especially when it was just for a month. In hindsight, Australia would have been happy with a longer ban so that he would miss the WTC Final 2025. They were right to be afraid.
Rabada rattled Australia with a five-wicket haul under an overcast Lord’s en route to his 50 Test wickets against the same opponents. The Protean fast bowler reached the landmark in just 11 matches or 19 innings, making Australia his favourite opponent. Rabada went past Allan Donald as he took his Test wickets tally to 331 with 5/54 in the WTC Final 2025 at Lord’s.
Most Test wickets for South Africa
- 439 – Dale Steyn
- 421 – Shaun Pollock
- 390 – Makhaya Ntini
- 331 – Kagiso Rabada
- 330 – Allan Donald
Kagiso Rabada’s fiery spell
Rabada started with three maiden overs, as his outswingers were difficult to deal with for Marnus Labuschagne and, especially, Usman Khawaja. After Rabada conceded his first run against Marnus Labuschagne, Khawaja once again fell to the Protean star for a 20-ball duck after edging it to second slip.
This was the sixth time that Khawaja was dismissed by Rabada in Tests, making him a bunny. Overall, Khawaj has fallen victim to Rabada’s fiery bowling nine times across formats. Two balls later, Cameron Green followed suit, again edging to the slip.
Usman Khawaja vs bowlers in Tests
- Stuart Broad – 8
- Jasprit Bumrah – 6
- Kagiso Rabada – 6
- Chris Woakes – 6
While Steve Smith and Beau Webster responded well, scoring 66 and 72, respectively, Rabada went for the kill after the tea break. He cleaned up Pat Cummins with a terrific delivery. In his next over, Beau Webster fell prey as he edged it to David Bedingham in the slips. Mitchell Starc became his 5th victim as Rabada completed his 4th fifer against Australia.
| Format | Mat | Inns | Overs | Wkts | Best | 5W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Test | 11 | 19 | 342.1 | 54 | 6/54 | 4 |
| ODI | 16 | 15 | 128.2 | 30 | 4/54 | 0 |
| T20I | 10 | 10 | 35 | 9 | 2/25 | 0 |
Rabada vs Australia
Kagiso Rabada is the 10th South African bowler to bag 50 Test wickets against Australia. Dale Steyn leads the way with 70 wickets in 15 matches, while Rabada now has 54 wickets in 11 matches. Rabada also has four five-wicket hauls against Australia.
Ahead of the AUS vs SA WTC Final 2025, South Africa captain Temba Bavuma said that Rabada will have an extra motivation against Australia after Tim Paine’s comments. The 30-year-old pacer worked with former England star Stuart Broad ahead of the WTC Final. And Rabada did not disappoint.
“It is definitely a motivation. I think it’s been a couple of weeks now that everything has unfolded. He had a conversation with the team. He put himself on the spot for further questioning from any of the players. As far as we know, that’s kind of behind us. We’ve really come here with the focus on what we need to do here. And I think he’s in the best shape that he’s ever been, so definitely motivated. We also play against the Australians as well, so you know that will be extra motivation for him,” Temba Bavuma said at the press conference ahead of the WTC Final 2025.
Overall, in the South Africa vs Australia rivalry, Shane Warne has 130 wickets in 24 Tests.
South African bowlers vs Australia
| Player | Mat | Inns | Wkts | Best | Avg | 5W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dale Steyn | 15 | 28 | 70 | 5/67 | 27.47 | 2 |
| Hugh Joseph Tayfield | 15 | 25 | 64 | 7/23 | 34.5 | 4 |
| Morne Morkel | 16 | 31 | 58 | 5/23 | 33.67 | 2 |
| Makhaya Ntini | 15 | 29 | 58 | 6/100 | 34.74 | 2 |
| Vernon Philander | 14 | 27 | 53 | 6/21 | 24.67 | 4 |
| Trevor Leslie Goddard | 18 | 34 | 53 | 6/53 | 27.58 | 2 |
| Allan Donald | 14 | 24 | 53 | 6/59 | 31.07 | 2 |
| Shaun Pollock | 14 | 27 | 52 | 6/95 | 27.65 | 3 |
| Kagiso Rabada | 11* | 19 | 54 | 6/54 | 21.88 | 4 |
| Jaques Kallis | 28 | 44 | 50 | 3/22 | 37.56 | – |
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