They have 1508 Test wickets among them. Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon are among the finest bowling combinations that has played together in Test history. In 2024, Australia became the first team to field an attack with four bowlers having 250 Test wickets each when Josh Hazlewood removed Alick Athanaze in Adelaide. At some point this year, they may field an attack where four of them have at least 300 wickets.
Cummins needs just six to reach the milestone – he could well do that in the World Test Championship (WTC) final – while Josh Hazlewood is 21 away, so the Ashes is perhaps more realistic for him. Mitchell Starc is well past 300 and is 18 away from joining the 400 club. Lyon sits on 553 and is 11 away from becoming Australia’s second-highest wicket-taker of all time behind Shane Warne. For the record, the most Test wickets in an XI was the 1989 England had against Australia at The Oval in 2023.
Barring late injury problems, the four of them are set to line up against South Africa at Lord’s – the 33rd time they will have done so, a mark of their longevity – where Australia will aim to defend their WTC title. Josh Hazlewood is banking on his superb English record to get ahead of his peers during the ICC World Test Championship 2025 final between Australia and South Africa at Lord’s next week.
Josh Hazlewood’s superb record on England shores
Josh Hazlewood can simply wake up anywhere in the world and automatically hit those probing lengths in the channel against the batters. Only four days since lifting his second IPL title with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Ahmedabad, the 34-year-old Hazlewood limbered up with the Australia squad in England, hopeful of making his Test comeback against South Africa in the ICC World Test Championship final at Lord’s on Wednesday.
Having missed out on red-ball action since an injury in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy last year has not shaken him up too much. The metronomic right-arm pacer had also missed Australia’s WTC final triumph in 2023 against India at the Oval, with Scott Boland taking his spot in the vaunted Australian bowling attack.
Josh Hazlewood is banking on his superb English record to get ahead of his peers. Of his 279 Test wickets in 72 matches since his debut in 2014, 52 wickets have come in England across three tours in 2015, ’17 and ’23 at a superb 44.3 strike rate, nearly 10 balls better than his career overalls. Josh Hazlewood also holds a prolific record at Lord’s, nabbing 13 wickets in three appearances without defeat at the iconic venue.
If things had fallen a little differently for Josh Hazlewood, he would now be beyond 300 wickets. A run of injuries (and some spin-heavy selections on the subcontinent) meant he played just four Tests between 2021 and 2023. After stringing together ten in a row in 2023-24, injuries returned to hamper him last season against India. His Test average of 24.57 is at its lowest point since March 2017 when he played his 28th match.
Josh Hazlewood has not featured in the Test side since picking up a calf injury against India in Brisbane, which followed a side strain earlier in the series, and is hoping to fill one of the few gaps on his CV at Lord’s having missed out on the 2023 WTC final against India when he was recovering from injury.
Josh Hazlewood feels he is bowling as well as at any time in his career as he sets his sights on returning to Australia’s line-up for the World Test Championship final against South Africa.
Josh Hazlewood expresses that he is in his best bowling form
The stage is set for the final of the World Test Championship. Australia will lock horns against South Africa in the WTC final from June 11. Both sides will be looking to put in their best performances in the upcoming crucial game. Ahead of the game, there could be many players who could prove to be standout performers for their side.
One of the names that could make a big impact could be Australia’s ace pacer Josh Hazlewood. Coming on the back of an exceptional season in the IPL (Indian Premier League) 2025, Josh Hazlewood will be hoping to continue his form and propel Australia to their second WTC title as well.
Ahead of the crucial game, Josh Hazlewood took centre stage and opined that he is feeling more confident in his bowling more than ever. It is worth noting that the pacer has not featured for Australia in the longest format since picking up a calf injury against India in Brisbane. Josh Hazlewood feels he is bowling as well as at any time in his career as he sets his sights on returning to Australia’s line-up for the World Test Championship final against South Africa.
“I was obviously quite close last time [in 2023], I just had more of an interrupted IPL leading into that, and then had a few little issues going on, so wasn’t quite up to scratch, but I feel in much better place this time around,” Hazlewood was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.
“And I think in any format, my numbers over the last two years have been pretty good, so have got a lot to fall back on in terms of skill wise. I still feel like I’m bowling probably the best over my career and it’s just a matter of the body holding up, which it has been in the last few months,” he added.
Josh Hazlewood was a late arrival in the UK (along with Josh Inglis) having completed an outstanding IPL campaign for champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) where he claimed 22 wickets. On Saturday he sent down around five overs at moderate intensity during Australia’s optional training session in Beckenham as he eased back into bowling after the journey from India and was set for a more thorough workout on Sunday at Lord’s where he will operate at close to full pace.
Barring any setbacks Josh Hazlewood is expected to keep Scott Boland out of the XI for the final. In his last 13 Tests, Josh Hazlewood has taken 57 wickets at 19.68 since returning to the side during the 2023 Ashes following a period where injuries had limited him to four outings in two years.
“I will probably nail down a few more overs tomorrow and then over the next few days, tick a lot of boxes,” Hazlewood told the ICC ahead of the team’s training session on Saturday.
“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,” he added.
Josh Hazlewood’s return is not exactly straightforward with the tall pacer facing some challenge from Boland, with skipper Pat Cummins, left-armer Mitchell Starc and spin legend Nathan Lyon marking definite spots
“Everyone looks in good shape,” Hazlewood said of his bowling teammates.
“We’ve all been in different parts of the world playing or training over the last couple of months, so it’s good to get everyone together and catch up with everyone yesterday and the day before and get all on the same page moving forward.”
Josh Hazlewood made his Test debut in December 2014 against India and bagged a five-wicket haul. He has so far played 72 Tests, scalping a total of 279 wickets at 24.57. The tally includes 12 five-wicket hauls. Against South Africa, he owns 34 wickets at 26.55. On England soil, he averages 26.07 for 52 Test wickets. Ahead of playing the iconic finals at Lords Josh Hazlewood expressed his feeling and concluded by saying
“Any time I bowl in England I’m reasonably confident,” Hazlewood remarked.
“I’ve had some good tours here over the last 10 years and Lord’s in particular,”
“I haven’t lost before at Lord’s yet as a player, certainly in red-ball cricket for sure and we have had a couple of good wins there over the years.” he concluded
Josh Hazlewood would be the key for Australia’s success to become 2nd time consecutive winners of the prestigious ICC test mace and given the records Josh Hazlewood holds that he has won all the nine finals he was part of the 10th title in his name would be just loading next week in the WTC finals 2025.