T20 WC 2024 final heartbreak to WTC 2025 triumph: South Africa heal from agony with history at Lord's

South Africa clinched their first World Test Championship title, defeating Australia at Lord's. This victory marks the end of a 27-year ICC trophy drought for the Proteas, overcoming past heartbreaks like the 2024 T20 World Cup final loss.

After enduring decades of heartbreak and near misses, South Africa has rewritten its narrative and history by lifting their maiden World Test Championship title by defeating Australia in a thrilling final at Lord’s on Saturday, June 14.

Temba Bavuma-led Proteas registered their five-wicket win over the defending champions, led by Pat Cummins, to taste glory at an ICC tournament after 27 long years. The 27-year wait to clinch the ICC title was not just about numbers, but also resilience, redemption, and rewriting destiny, with the journey beginning with a heartbreak in the 1999 ODI World Cup semifinal and culminating in glory at the Home of Cricket.

The last time South Africa won an ICC trophy was the Champions Trophy (formerly the ICC Knockout) in 1998, when they defeated the West Indies in the final. Since then, it has been a hunt to break the knockout jinx, until a historic triumph at Lord’s finally ended their long-standing drought and delivered redemption for generations of Proteas fans.

A missed chance at the T20 World Cup 2024

South Africa might have suffered heartbreaks in the semifinals of the 1992, 1999, 2007, 2015, and 2023 ODI World Cups and 2009 and 2014 T20 World Cups. However, the biggest upset came in the T20 World Cup 2024, where they reached the final but lost to Team India in a nerve-wracking contest in Barbados.

Despite being unbeaten throughout the tournament, South Africa failed to cross the final hurdle. The T20 World Cup 2024 was the best chance to have a shot at glory after reaching the summit clash in their history of World Cups. Proteas were one of the favourites alongside Team India for the T20 World Cup title last year, but it was a repetition of the same story - a spirited campaign undone by nerves at the final frontier.

South Africa needed 30 off 30 balls to win the final, but fell eight runs short of achieving the 177-run target, as Team India’s death bowlers held their nerve under pressure, triggering a dramatic collapse that extended their agonizing wait for another ICC title.

The defeat in Barbados not only Proteas' heartbroken but also their fans, who were left wondering would South Africa would ever would ever overcome their ICC knockout curse and lift a global trophy, as they witnessed the same story repeating in every ICC tournament. Having reached the final of the World Cup for the first time at the T20 World Cup last year, Proteas fans would have thought crossing the finish line was finally within reach.

However, the heartbreak in Barbados only deepened the past wound. The wait continued from 1999, and hope once again turned into anguish.

Barbados' heartbreak healed at Lord’s

South Africa’s heartbreaking defeat in the T20 World Cup 2024 carried on into the Champions Trophy 2025, where they exited the tournament after a semifinal defeat to Australia. The wait seemed endless, as they lost yet another chance to taste the glory.

The World Test Championship Final was the last opportunity, technically, for this core group led by Temba Bavuma and senior players, including Aiden Markram, Keshav Maharaj, and Kagiso Rabada, to shed the burden of past failures.

After bundling out Australia for 207 in the second innings, South Africa were given a 282-run target to chase. It looked impossible, given that they were bundled out for 134 in the first innings on the same Lord’s pitch. However, the second innings were quite the opposite — marked by grit, composure, and brilliance, as Aiden Markram’s magnificent 136 and Temba Bavuma’s valiant 66 guided the Proteas to a thrilling victory, sealing a historic triumph that finally ended decades of heartbreak, especially in the T20 World Cup final.

With a historic World Test Championship triumph, the ‘chokers’ tag, which the Proteas were carrying for almost 3 decades, is no longer a burden but a bygone chapter in South Africa’s cricketing history.

The WTC triumph has marked a new era for South Africa, as it will be the beginning of a fearless, mentally resilient generation ready to rise beyond past scars and embrace global dominance across formats.

What's next for the Proteas after WTC triumph?

South Africa might have shed the ‘chokers’ tag with the World Test Championship title, but the challenge is to sustain this momentum across formats. Since the Proteas clinched an ICC title after 27 years, the real test lies in maintaining consistency, grooming a core group, and building on this historic success to challenge for the titles at the T20 World Cup 2026 in India and the ODI World Cup 2027 on home soil.

South Africa skipper Temba Bavuma expressed his belief that the team can carry on their momentum from the WTC triumph into tasting glory at the T20 and ODI World Cups.

“I think it will be massive. I mean, that tournament, we are definitely setting our sights on doing special things in that tournament," Bavuma said at the press conference.

"There is still a way to go until then. Shukri (Conrad) obviously comes in now as the white-ball coach, so we will see what plans that he has, who his personnel will be. But yeah, hopefully this is the start of those trophies for the team," he added.