Australia will look to add 20 to 30 more runs to their second innings total when the third day of the World Test Championship final against South Africa resumes at Lord’s on Friday, said captain Pat Cummins.
Australia will resume on 144-8 in the second innings, a total of 218 runs ahead as they seek to set an imposing target for South Africa to chase to win the match.
“Initially, we felt anything over 200 was good but you just want to get as many runs as you can,” Cummins told a press conference at the end of Thursday’s play.
“Hopefully we’ll get another 20 or 30 in the morning. That’d be good. I think that would give us a few more options to bowl at, allow a few more aggressive fields and those kind of things.”
Mitchell Starc was unbeaten on 16 and Nathan Lyon had one run at stumps on Thursday.
In test history at Lord’s there have only been three higher targets successfully chased down, so Australia look to be in the driving seat in a match dominated by high-quality bowling.
The pick of the bunch was Cummins, who produced the best bowling figures by a test captain at Lord’s as his 6-28 gave Australia a 74-run first-innings lead.
He also brought up 300 test wickets when Kagiso Rabada was the last wicket in South Africa’s first innings to fall.
“That’s something I always kind of thought about as a pretty good sign of durability, resilience and longevity. So, I feel pretty proud to join that group,” he added.
The first test wicket for the 32-year-old was against South Africa in Johannesburg in late 2011.
“I’ve had a really good run the last half a dozen years or so of not missing too many games. You know for the first few years I didn’t know where my second test match was coming.
“I feel like I’ve got lots of miles in the legs and don’t feel like I’m going to end any anytime soon.
“I really need to thank the medical staff, the way they looked after me in the early years to get through test matches,” he added.
(With agency input)
