Australia's Josh Hazlewood Targets World Test Championship Final Selection After Successful Recovery

Australia seamer Josh Hazlewood has pushed his name ahead for the upcoming ICC World Test Championship Final against South Africa. The veteran seam bowler has revealed that he has been putting in the warm-ups and has already ticked off some boxes in the IPL Final in Ahmedabad. Since his arrival in England, Hazlewood has had sound training sessions in Kent, showcasing that he has successfully recovered from the injury.

Josh Hazlewood Is Backing Himself Up To Be A Part Of WTC Final

Josh Hazlewood has remained out of Test Cricket action for Cricket Australia after suffering a calf issue. The Gabba Test saw the veteran going down with an injury and was eventually replaced by Scott Boland for the Sydney Test. The veteran bowler recently made waves at the recently concluded IPL 2025 season for RCB and has made a successful recovery. Hazlewood has joined the camp and has himself for his inclusion in Australia's Playing XI and he has ticked off some boxes already.

"I ticked over some good overs just before the (IPL) Final in Ahmedabad in different weather than this and it was quite a tough session. And then obviously, every time you play a game in the IPL, you're probably going to get almost seven or eight overs in, if you really want to.

"So in and around with warm-ups and obviously the four overs in the game. And we bowled second a lot of the time in IPL, so that was sort of two warm-ups, so you can squeeze in overs here and there and things are going pretty well," Josh Hazlewood said as quoted by ICC.

Also Read: Mark Boucher Projects WTC Victory Will Change South Africa's Test Cricket Future: 'Could Be The Turnaround'

South Africa Has a Chance To Make History

South Africa has a golden chance to shed off the 'chokers' label after years of narrow misses throughout the ICC tournaments. The Proteas Men would aim to clinch their first ICC championship title when they take the field at Lord's for the Test mace.

The Proteas Men would face a tough challenge from defending champions Australia, who had secured a spot in the final after a commanding showcase against India at the Border Gavaskar Trophy. The Aussies have remained consistent with their performance and have ranked among the top teams in the WTC Standings and will look to assert their dominance once again.  

The South Africa vs Australia one-off showdown at the WTC Final will take place at Lord's on June 11, 2025.

Also Read: Will Jasprit Bumrah Play All Five Tests vs England Despite Workload Management Issues? Team India's Bowling Coach Bharat Arun