Beating Australia in WTC final will be 'great achievement' for 'underdogs' South Africa: JP Duminy

South Africa have won eight out of their 12 matches in the 2023-25 cycle of the World Test Championship and sit atop the points table. They have also secured their berth in the final after winning the first match of the two-Test series against Pakistan.  

Former South African batting all-rounder, JP Duminy, seemed quite optimistic of South Africa coming up with a "big performance" against Australia despite labelling the former as an "underdog". 

"I'm certainly looking forward and excited to see. We certainly go in with the underdog tag, no doubt, going against Australia. But I know that we're going to put in a big performance, and hopefully, we can bring that number one mace home. We've obviously achieved that before in a different format. But this will be a great achievement for South African cricket," shared Duminy in a conversation with Hindustan Times. 

For the unversed, South Africa possessed the Test mace from 2013 to 2015 under the leadership of Graeme Smith.

Also Read: 'Don't think there is any advantage to South Africa' - Jonty Rhodes on side's chances in 2023-25 WTC final

'There's a strong inner belief in his own ability' - Duminy on Temba Bavuma

Speaking on the current full-time skipper of the Test side Temba Bavuma, Duminy lavished praise on Bavuma by praising the leadership characteristics he possessed.  

"Look, obviously, I've played with him for many years and obviously coached him as well. And he's got this quiet determination about him. There's a strong inner belief in his own ability. And that spills over into the team in terms of how he performs, how he trains, the clarity in which he speaks with. And that's obviously great attributes to have as a leader. I think he has a great leadership team around him, including his coaching staff and the senior players who influence those decision-making processes. But I'm really excited for him," he added.

Bavuma has led from the front through his batting performances and on-field captaincy. The Proteas, who would be desperately wanting to break their ICC title drought, would be hoping for more of the same from him.