WTC Winner List: Champions, Runners-up, Captains, Venues

World Test Championship Winners List by Cycle

It takes a certain kind of stubbornness to love Test cricket. To care about spells that begin in damp morning air and end in slow afternoon sunshine. To obsess over whether the seam is tilted by a degree, to notice a batter’s tiny press forward when the ball is 60 overs old. The ICC World Test Championship (WTC) bottled that stubborn love into a league-and-final format, asking the best sides to commit across two full years of travel, selection, form, and injuries—and then to settle everything in a single match with the world watching.

That final isn’t just a match. It is the reckoning point for a cycle’s choices: who you trusted at three, whether your attack had the variety to win anywhere, how you navigated over-rate penalties, and what your touring calendar demanded. The mace is heavy with symbolism for a reason.

This is the definitive WTC winners list and context you can trust—winners, runners-up, captains, venues, margins, Player of the Match awards, prize money, points system, qualification rules, and the records that truly matter. It’s an evergreen hub crafted by someone who has lived and reported through each twist: the dew at Southampton that night, the bravado at The Oval when a left-hander decided the best defense was a rampaging pull-shot.

Quick winners summary

• Inaugural final: New Zealand defeated India at Southampton (Ageas Bowl). Margin: 8 wickets. Player of the Match: Kyle Jamieson. Captains: Kane Williamson (NZ), Virat Kohli (India).
• Second final: Australia defeated India at The Oval, London. Margin: 209 runs. Player of the Match: Travis Head. Captains: Pat Cummins (Australia), Rohit Sharma (India).
• Next final: scheduled for Lord’s, London. Finalists to be confirmed based on the ongoing cycle’s standings.

WTC winners and runners-up list with captains, venue, margin, Player of the Match, prize money

Note: Cycles are identified as “inaugural,” “second,” and “current/upcoming” to avoid date clutter and keep this page evergreen.

Table: World Test Championship finals at a glance

Cycle	Winner	Runner-up	Winner captain	Runner-up captain	Venue (City)	Margin	Player of the Match	Winner prize (USD)	Runner-up prize (USD)
Inaugural	New Zealand	India	Kane Williamson	Virat Kohli	Ageas Bowl (Southampton)	8 wkts	Kyle Jamieson	1,600,000	800,000
Second	Australia	India	Pat Cummins	Rohit Sharma	The Oval (London)	209 runs	Travis Head	1,600,000	800,000
Current/Next	TBD	TBD	TBD	TBD	Lord’s (London)	TBD	TBD	TBD	TBD

The inaugural final: swing, patience, and a clinical chase

There’s something about a new trophy that clarifies intent. From the first morning at Southampton, with the sky necklaced in gray and the Duke’s ball beading with moisture, the plan for New Zealand was transparent: pitch up, attack the top of off, trust the cordon. India believed in their balance; two high-class spinners ready for a drying surface and three quicks to exploit the early assistance.

Selection chatter swirled even before the toss. Should India have played an extra seamer? The outfield was heavy, the wicket greenish, but there was a sense the pitch would flatten. Kane Williamson, reading both the surface and the weather radar, chose to field. Everything that followed felt like a referendum on that decision.

India battled for most of the first innings. Cheteshwar Pujara wore a ball on the glove, Virat Kohli left late and defended even later, Ajinkya Rahane found soft hands. But Kyle Jamieson, with that confounding hard length and a seam that never wavered, unspooled a spell the game still remembers. His 5-for cracked India’s spine; he trapped Kohli and, crucially, never let India surge beyond the line where the tail could add chaos. India’s total was competitive in theory, light in context.

New Zealand’s reply had rhythm. Devon Conway’s poise against the new ball, Williamson’s urge to quietly win sessions, the middle order’s acceptance that handsome strokes could wait. Mohammed Shami’s upright seam and late movement pulled them back with a four-wicket haul, and Ishant Sharma’s angles worried batters on both stumps. Still, a lead—any lead—felt like gold on that surface.

The pivot was India’s second innings. The pitch did not turn as much as two spinners warranted. The New Zealand quicks, experienced in waiting and hunting in twos, denied free scoring and forced airy drives. Rishabh Pant played the way he lives—front-foot intent—but the edges arrived. Tim Southee shaped one late and another earlier; Trent Boult hit the bootlaces; Jamieson returned to uproot the big fish again. The target was small enough to feel inevitable and large enough to require calm. Williamson provided that calm. A push past mid-off, Taylor’s closing flourish, and an embrace that looked like release as much as triumph.

The final didn’t crown a batting giant or a mystery spinner. It vindicated plans made seasons earlier: identifying bowlers built for English conditions, trusting a batting method that doesn’t panic at 10 balls without a boundary, and backing a captain whose greatest gift is serenity.

The second final: a blaze of counterattack and clinical seam

A different city, a different script. The Oval offers bounce and carry, yes, but it is also an honest wicket. If you’re good enough, you can score fast. Australia were more than good enough. And Travis Head chose speed as his shield.

This final will be replayed forever for one partnership. When India reduced Australia to three down with the ball still new, the day tilted. Then Head and Steve Smith wrote a note that will live on in coaching files: how to take a tight game away in an hour. Head rode the bounce, hooked into the stands, and, crucially, dragged the length back. Once the bowlers moved that fraction shorter to cramp Head, Smith made the full ball look like a miscalculation, middling drives like he had memorized the seam. By the time the stand was done, the scoreboard showed a gulf the second innings could not bridge. It remains the largest pivotal partnership a WTC final has witnessed.

India were not without reply. Ajinkya Rahane, quietly reinstated, played a gem full of discipline and timing. Shardul Thakur thumbed convention with another counterpunch fifty that felt entirely in character. But in the third innings—really the hinge on which many finals swing—Alex Carey tightened the screws with street-smart batting, and Pat Cummins didn’t blink. He declared in a place that felt both brave and inevitable, asking India to chase a mountain.

Sides chasing a monster at The Oval usually need an early 100-run stand, a slice of luck, and a fair wind. Instead, India found Scott Boland and his miracle of repetition, hitting fourth-stump lines as if computer-coded, coaxing an edge from Virat Kohli at the precise moment the chase demanded defiance. Nathan Lyon then applied the slow suffocation act. The close-in catchers grew, figuratively, in the batter’s mind. The off spinner changed flight and pace with the temperament of a poker pro who never shows his hand. The margin—more than two hundred—spoke of Australia’s completeness.

Both finals, two distinct temperaments. One won with a chase under cloud after a week of cat-and-mouse. One won by battering the opposition with a fearless middle-order assault and piling on scoreboard pressure the opponent could not psychologically climb. And there you have the charm of the WTC: it can be won in radically different ways.

Finals venue history—and why England works

• Ageas Bowl, Southampton: The inaugural showpiece was placed at a venue with on-site accommodation and bio-secure capacity, but it was also a smart cricketing choice. The ball swings, the square drains, and there’s always a whisper of lateral movement even into the afternoon. Because the stadium isn’t a carbon-copy of a London track, it tests decision-making from ball one.
• The Oval, London: The stage of great finales. The Oval has character—carry to the slips, a true bounce that keeps drives alive, and footmarks that can interest spinners if you live long enough into the match. It’s also a big-occasion ground. Full, noisy, dramatic.
• Lord’s, London: The next final goes to the game’s postcard. The slope sharpens skill. The surface can be slowish early and then liven as it dries. The tradition lends a patina to the achievement that players will cherish. If you lift the mace here, it’s the photograph you put on the mantel for life.

Prize money and the mace

Prize money has been consistent at the top across the first two finals: the champions earned USD 1.6 million; the runners-up half that. That distribution made a statement: this is not a one-off exhibition; it’s a financial and symbolic reward for mastering the longest format. The winners also receive the ICC Test Mace—the same emblem once reserved for the top-ranked Test side across the rankings table. It’s a golden-silver scepter crowned by a perforated orb styled like a cricket ball and a globe rolled into one. It looks ceremonial because it is ceremonial. It says: you conquered everywhere, then you conquered one day when everything counts double.

How the WTC points system actually works

Understanding how teams get to the final is half the fun for fans tracking permutations.

• Points per match: Every Test in the WTC league phase carries the same total. A win is worth 12 points, a tie is 6, and a draw is 4. A defeat earns nothing.
• Percentage of points: Because teams play a different number of matches and series, standings are sorted by the percentage of points won (PCT). In simple terms, if you win most of what you contest, you’re ahead, no matter how many Tests you were scheduled to play.
• Over-rate penalties: If a team is found short of the required over rate, they lose one WTC point for each over short, in addition to financial fines. These deductions alter PCT and can be decisive. Sides have felt the pinch—lists scribbled in dressing rooms with “don’t lose a point here” underlined in red.
• Series flexibility: Not every team plays every other. Schedules are arranged bilaterally, but the points work per match, not per series, to even the field.
• Tie-breaks: PCT leads, followed by wins, and then in rare deadlocks the playing conditions allow further criteria.

How teams qualify for the final

It’s simple on paper: the top two by PCT at the end of the league phase qualify. It’s rarely simple in real time. Mid-cycle, a team can look dominant and then lose a cluster of away Tests; another can charge late, picking up full 12s from a short home series. Because draws still yield 4, some sides in tricky overseas conditions play a long game: avoid defeat, squeeze later. Others bet aggressive strategies on full value—the 12-point payoff that changes the table overnight. What the format has already ensured is that every Test inside the WTC is read with implications beyond the series. That alone has changed viewing habits.

The finals, by captain

The WTC has already made captains immortal or more complicated, depending on your perspective. Two leaders have lifted the mace so far; two others have worn the longest faces on the final day.

• Kane Williamson: calm in clouds, inscrutable at the toss, attacking without theater. His bowlers trust his fields because he trusts their lengths. One mace.
• Pat Cummins: clear with plans, ruthless with the declaration, generous in credits public and private. One mace.
• Virat Kohli: drove India’s Test revival, took them to the first summit clash, ran into a moving ball and Jamieson’s new-ball wizardry. Runner-up as captain.
• Rohit Sharma: tactical patience, a batter’s reading of surfaces, but ran into the most irresistible middle-order assault The Oval has hosted in a neutral final. Runner-up as captain.

WTC winners and runners-up by team

A team-wise snapshot puts the broader picture in perspective.

Team	Titles	Runner-up finishes
Australia	1	0
New Zealand	1	0
India	0	2
Others	0	0

India’s WTC final record

Two finals. Two different captains. Two very different matches. One persistent disappointment. Against New Zealand, conditions bit. The ball didn’t turn enough to justify two frontline spinners, and the top order never really controlled a session. Against Australia, the issue wasn’t movement; it was scoreboard pressure born from a left-hander’s audacity and a methodical second-day grind.

If there’s a lesson for India, it’s less about ethos and more about details. Pick attacks that mirror the venue, not just your identity. Guard against over-rate penalties that can decide PCT. And bring a plan for the English Duke’s ball when it jaggers after lunch, not just in the first hour. Their pathway back to the final remains strong; their talent pool is deep. But the WTC has made it clear: the last five days of a cycle require a kind of ruthlessness India has shown in bilateral series, yet must bottle in the one match that matters.

Australia’s route to the mace

Australia won their final with clarity. The batting template existed before Head walked out; the attack knew the lanes they wanted to fill. Scott Boland’s method would be a masterclass anywhere; with The Oval’s bounce, it became an art installation. Cummins’ declaration wasn’t just data-driven; it was feel. The bowling rotations felt like a band managing a set list—big hits at just the right moment, no indulgent solos.

New Zealand’s day in the cloud

New Zealand’s victory carried an extra layer of satisfaction. This is a program that invested in patience long before the WTC made it currency. They built a pace attack that could move it at home and away. They trusted a batting philosophy that doesn’t try to dominate every spell but wins hours one after another. In Southampton’s strange light, all of that bloomed. Jamieson’s emergence turned a very good attack into a terrifying one. Williamson’s “don’t-lift-your-voice” captaincy style never let the heartbeat spike. The mace, in many ways, justified a decade of quiet work.

Records from WTC finals worth remembering

• Centuries in finals: Travis Head (163) and Steve Smith (121) at The Oval. No hundred in the inaugural decider.
• Five-wicket hauls in finals: Kyle Jamieson delivered a five-for in the first innings of the inaugural final; no bowler claimed a five-for in the second final.
• Highest partnership in a final: Head and Smith combined for a towering stand for Australia’s fourth wicket at The Oval, an unmatched finals benchmark to date.
• Player of the Match honours: Kyle Jamieson for pace and discipline; Travis Head for controlled aggression that flipped the match early.
• Captains with the mace: Kane Williamson and Pat Cummins—one each so far.

World Test Championship trophy: name, look, meaning

The winners receive the ICC Test Mace, an elegant piece of cricket iconography. It isn’t a cup. It isn’t a platter. It’s a scepter, deliberately old-world, topped by a golden globe styled as a cricket ball lattice. The symbolism is the whole point: a kingly sign of stewardship over the longest form. In the WTC era, it has a sharper edge. It doesn’t just reward ranking dominance; it rewards proof under pressure, a summit conquered after a gauntlet of tours and a final under neutral conditions.

Prize money distribution across cycles

At the top, the structure has held: champions bank USD 1.6 million; runners-up USD 800,000. The total pool is larger, with other qualified teams sharing based on their finishing slot in the league table, but the headline hasn’t shifted. That consistency gives boards a planning number and players a tangible target. Test cricket earns here; that matters.

WTC points table and standings: what to watch as the current cycle peaks

• Percentage, not perception: A team with fewer matches can still surge if wins are clustered late. Track PCT, not raw points.
• Home sweeps and away steals: Home clean sweeps are gold. But one away win can be worth an entire series’ momentum.
• Over-rate discipline: One slow day can cost a point that knocks a team from second to third. Smart captains drive the tempo.
• Form of opening pairs: In English finals, a good start sets the day. In league play, openers set the tone for an entire tour.
• Bowling variety: You need at least one bowler who can move it in the air and one who can hit the pitch hard. If your spinner can attack from over and around, you’re laughing.

Finals by venue and conditions—what history whispers

• Southampton: Expect morning nibble and late afternoon symmetry. New ball spells decide equilibrium. If you win the toss, don’t be greedy. Think session by session.
• The Oval: Bounce for seamers, value for shots. You can ride a wave here. If a partnership gets going, captains must interrupt rhythm with angle changes and pace off.
• Lord’s: The slope defines line and length for right-arm quicks. Batters must commit to leaves. If overheads are heavy, don’t be seduced by how the pitch looks; trust what the air promises.

WTC finals scorecards in brief

Inaugural final, Ageas Bowl

• India 217 (Rahane 49, Kohli 44; Jamieson 5-for)
• New Zealand 249 (Conway 54, Williamson 49; Shami 4-for)
• India 170 (Pant 41; Southee 4-for)
• New Zealand 140/2 (Williamson 52*, Taylor 47*) — New Zealand won by 8 wickets

Second final, The Oval

• Australia 469 (Head 163, Smith 121; Siraj 4-for)
• India 296 (Rahane 89, Thakur 51; Cummins 3-for)
• Australia 270/8 decl. (Carey 66; Jadeja 3-for)
• India 234 (Kohli 49; Lyon 4-for, Boland 3-for) — Australia won by 209 runs

The pattern that wins WTC finals

• Win toss decisions by reading the sky as much as the strip.
• Control run rate in the opposition’s first innings. Finals are often lost by allowing a 120-run hour.
• Secure at least one long, partnership-defining stand with the bat. In neutral conditions, a 150-plus alliance often separates sides.
• Select horses for courses; don’t bring a second-line spinner to a venue that rewards relentless pace bowling, and vice versa.
• Value the “hidden runs”: No-balls, wides, byes—finals magnify margins.

WTC players most influential across cycles

There’s no official Player of the Series for the multi-season WTC league itself, though each bilateral series and the final carry awards. Still, certain names keep floating to the top of leaderboards.

• Run machines: Joe Root’s weight of numbers straddles both cycles with remarkable consistency. Marnus Labuschagne, Babar Azam, and Steve Smith have all spent long stretches in the upper tiers. In India’s lineup, big-cycle runs from Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have shaped campaigns.
• Wicket magnets: Ravichandran Ashwin’s craft has carved through home line-ups and troubled batters overseas; Nathan Lyon’s off-spin has devoured middle orders late in long Tests; Pat Cummins and Jasprit Bumrah have set tones for entire series with just one new ball spell.

Finals records worth a pub debate

• Most impactful innings: Head’s 160-plus at The Oval wasn’t just volume. It neutralized length, redirected plans, and psychologically moved the contest out of India’s grasp.
• Spell of the finals era: Jamieson’s first-innings five-for in the inaugural final. The ball that dismissed Kohli felt like a thesis statement: hit a menacing length with perfect seam; let the ball and conditions do the violence.
• Highest partnership: Head and Smith, a stand that re-coded the risk calculus for a WTC final’s first day.
• Fielding moments: Catching at slip in England under thick cloud decides big matches. Taylor’s closing strokes in the first final were made possible by hours of the cordon refusing charity.

WTC finals by captain and venue: micro-list

• Captains who lifted the mace: Kane Williamson (Southampton), Pat Cummins (The Oval).
• Player of the Match winners: Kyle Jamieson (Southampton), Travis Head (The Oval).
• Runner-up skippers: Virat Kohli (Southampton), Rohit Sharma (The Oval).

Has India won the WTC?

Not yet. Two finals, two near-misses. They remain one of the favorites in every cycle and could easily tilt the next summit with slightly sharper selections for English conditions and a less expensive first two sessions with the ball.

Who won the first WTC?

New Zealand. The quiet revolutionaries of red-ball cricket prevailed with swing, discipline, and composure.

Which team has the most WTC titles?

It’s even at the top right now. Australia and New Zealand sit on one title each. The next final will break the tie—or usher in a third champion.

Where is the next final?

Lord’s, London. The slope, the pavilion, the long shadows in evening light—it will feel timeless and new at once.

How the WTC changed Test cricket

• Every Test counts: Fans track PCT mid-series. Teams debate declarations with points in mind, not just a trophy in the room.
• Squads are deeper: Extended cycles reward teams that rotate without losing intensity. It’s not just a best XI format; it’s a best squad era.
• Away wins matter more: A single overseas victory can be a twelve-point heist. Sides prepare more meticulously for unfamiliar conditions.
• Over-rate discipline: Time management is not optional. Captains run games with the table open on an analyst’s tablet.

WTC winners list in words, not numbers

• Inaugural cycle: New Zealand beat India at Southampton, eight-wicket margin, Jamieson the star.
• Second cycle: Australia beat India at The Oval, a giant margin, Head the match-turner.
• Current cycle: Lord’s awaits; form and fitness charts will likely change more than once before the two top sides shake hands on the pavilion steps.

WTC finals by venue profile

• Southampton: Suits tall seamers who hit the splice and bring the keeper into play above the waist more than the shins. Batters who leave well early can cash in after lunch.
• The Oval: If you’re a batter with a great pull-shot, you feel like royalty. If you’re a seamer who loves kissing the deck, it’s paradise. Spinners can profit on day four if their pace is right.
• Lord’s: New-ball spells are theatre. Right-arm over from the Pavilion End can feel like bowling down an alley with a slight tilt. A wise captain rotates ends to exploit natural shape.

WTC finals: man of the match list

• Kyle Jamieson, New Zealand, for a five-for and relentless discipline in the inaugural final.
• Travis Head, Australia, for an audacious match-defining hundred in the second final.

WTC final scorecards: what the numbers miss

Scorecards capture the runs and wickets; they don’t always capture why. Jamieson’s length wasn’t just fuller; it was heavier. Head’s hooks didn’t just score; they moved length, nudged fielders, and changed the energy in the ground. Cummins’ declaration wasn’t just arithmetic; it was a read on weather, pitch, and the psychology of a big chase.

A team-wise view of finals DNA

• New Zealand: Culture of humility and clarity. Attack built for English conditions. Batting method that respects the match’s time horizon.
• Australia: Ruthlessness paired with adaptability. Batters who read match tempo. Bowlers who can attack with both seam and spin without leaking.
• India: High ceiling, unmatched depth, but selection in English finals must be hyper-specific. The engine is strong; tuning for the final lap can decide everything.

WTC winners list PDF, scorecard links, and official sources

If you prefer a personal archive, save this page and revisit after each cycle. Official data lives with the ICC and the ball-by-ball depth with ESPNcricinfo. Match awards and prize money distribution are announced by the ICC and repeated across major cricket publications.

FAQ: World Test Championship winners and finals

• Who won the first WTC? New Zealand, beating India at Southampton.
• Who won the second WTC final? Australia, beating India at The Oval.
• Which team has the most WTC titles? Australia and New Zealand are tied at one each so far.
• Where is the next WTC final? Lord’s, London.
• How many teams qualify for the WTC final? Two—the top two by percentage of points at the end of the league phase.
• How does the points system work? Win = 12 points, tie = 6, draw = 4. Standings are based on percentage of points. Over-rate penalties deduct points.
• What is the prize money for the WTC final? Champions receive USD 1.6 million; runners-up USD 800,000.
• Who was Player of the Match in the first and second finals? Kyle Jamieson in the inaugural final; Travis Head in the second final.
• What is the WTC trophy? The ICC Test Mace—awarded to the champions.

Why this page exists—and how to use it

Too many pages recycle one-liners without context. This hub keeps the WTC winners list clean, but treats the finals with respect for the craft. If you’re revising for a quiz, you have the essentials in one place. If you’re a tragic like me, you get the texture that made the results inevitable.

As the current cycle races to its conclusion, here’s what I’ll be watching: a rising young quick finding a perfect rhythm with the Dukes ball by London’s spring; a Test batter in an away series choosing grit over glamour for three gritty hours; a captain who refuses to lose a single over to dawdle. Because those tiny margins add up—first to PCT, then to finals, and ultimately to a mace raised to a sky that might be slate gray or brilliantly blue, but always feels like the purest color in cricket.

Appendix: WTC essentials in one place

• Winners list by cycle: New Zealand, then Australia; next champion to be decided.
• Runners-up list: India twice.
• Venues used: Southampton, The Oval; next up, Lord’s.
• Player of the Match in finals: Jamieson; Head.
• Prize money headline: USD 1.6 million for winners, USD 800,000 for runners-up.
• Points system headline: 12 for a win; standings by percentage; penalties for slow over-rates.

Final word

The World Test Championship didn’t invent meaning in Tests. It made the meaning legible to everyone at once. A league that rewards consistency, a final that demands nerve, and a mace that says: in a sport of instant candy, you chose a slow meal—and you cooked it to perfection.