How South Africa conquered Test cricket in 2025

Temba Bavuma averages 53 in 12 Tests as South Africa captain

Temba Bavuma averages 53 in 12 Tests as South Africa captain

From a certain vantage point, the health of Test cricket in South Africa appears terminal.

For the first time since sporting isolation during apartheid, there will be no red-ball action in the country this summer. Instead, fans must make do watching Indian-owned T20 franchises compete in the SA20.

The next time the Proteas take the field in whites on home soil will be October 2026, 21 months after hosting Pakistan in January this year.

And yet the Test team itself has rarely looked in better shape, with 2025 proving a watershed year.

Ryan Rickelton registered his country's first double century for nine years as Pakistan were swept 2–0. In June, a sublime fourth-innings 136 from Aiden Markram, allied to a nine-wicket match haul from Kagiso Rabada, carried South Africa to a five-wicket victory over Australia in the World Test Championship (WTC) final at Lord's.

And with the choker's tag finally dislodged, and momentum behind them, South Africa are on track to qualify for another WTC final.

Wiaan Mulder threatened Brian Lara's record for the highest Test score when he declared himself on 367 against Zimbabwe in July. In October, Keshav Maharaj bagged a seven-for in Rawalpindi to square the series with Pakistan.

A month later, Simon Harmer claimed 17 wickets in two Tests as South Africa beat India 2-0 in their own backyard, becoming the first South African team to win away in India since 2000.

"It's been a remarkable period for us," says Sunuran Muthusamy, the spin-bowling all-rounder who scored his maiden century in the 408-run win in the second Test against India.

"We're straight into the SA20 so it's hard to really take stock. But in the small moments when we've had a chance to reflect, we know that we've found a great formula. It feels like things are really clicking."

How a 'winning machine' was built

The year began with uncertainty but also hope.

In the afterglow of a nerve-jangling two-wicket win against Pakistan in the 2024 Boxing Day Test - a result that secured South Africa's place in the WTC final - there was a sense the group had reached a crossroads.

In a year when Test cricket could no longer rely on tradition or goodwill, only sustained success would keep it visible, relevant and valued.

"We needed to become a winning machine," explains the team's bullish coach, Shukri Conrad, who inherited a side in disarray after Mark Boucher resigned from the role in late 2022.

"With so few opportunities to play, and with the margin for error so small, we had to start playing to our potential."