Watch the Australians warm up for the WTC final

The Test season is back in the spotlight with the World Test Championship final, between Australia and South Africa, scheduled to begin on June 11 at Lord's. The Australian squad began warming up for the big clash by training at Beckenham County Ground in south London after a squad bonding session in Scotland over the weekend.

Steven Smith had a report from the nets. "A little bit fresh today, a little bit of wind, but nice to start off our preparation, get a bit of rhythm, hit quite a few balls, and, you know, looking forward to Lord's now. We've got some really fond memories of Lord's. Personally, I've got some fond memories as well, so looking forward to getting started. South Africa are a good side, so should be a belter of a game and hopefully we can get another Test Championship final under our belt."

Australia are the defending Test champions, having beaten India by 209 runs in the 2023 final at The Oval. Smith scored 121 in that match and Travis Head made 163 as Australia posted 469 and then gained a 173-run lead.

The 2025 final will be South Africa's first Test final. Their practice plans have been left in disarray to due poor weather in Arundel. No play was possible on two out of the first three days of their warm-up match against the touring Zimbabwean side. Nevertheless, South Africa's line-up got some batting practice, with Ryan Rickelton, Temba Bavuma and Tristan Stubbs scoring half-centuries in a total of 313.