ICC Test Championship Mace

Trophy in the sport of cricket
Most wins Australia (9 times)Most recent Australia (9th title, 2023)

The ICC Test Championship Mace is an award currently given to the winner of the ICC World Test Championship from 2021.
However, previously from 2003 to 2019, the Test Mace was awarded annually to the top-ranked Test team (as per April 1 cut-off) in the ICC Test Championship (2003-2009).

History

The mace's original design dates back to 2000, when it was crafted by Trevor Brown, a trophy designer employed at Thomas Lyte.[1][2] In 2021, the mace underwent a redesign, and the updated version was meticulously crafted by hand at the workshop of Thomas Lyte in London.[1][3]

Prior to the introduction of the World Test Championship (WTC) Final, the mace was awarded to the team at the top of the ICC Men's Test Team Rankings.[1][2] Since the inception of the WTC Final, the mace has been awarded to the winning team, with the New Zealand team being the first recipient under this new system.[1][4]

Design

The mace is made from sterling silver and gold plates, with a hardwood base.[1][4] Its design features a handle resembling a cricket stump, wrapped in a silver-gilt laurel band.[1][3] The top of the mace is notable for its depiction of a gold-plated cricket ball within a global map, inspired by the sight of a cricketer holding a stump as a souvenir after a match.[1][5]

The design incorporates longitude lines similar to those on a globe, creating reflections against the golden cricket ball.[1] These lines were shaped using hot forging and soldered together to form the globe shape.[1] Around this globe is a belt displaying the insignia of the 12 Test nations participating, with space to include additional nations in the future.[1][3]

List of mace winners

ICC Test Championship (2003–2019)

Year Team Captain Ref.
April 2003  Australia Ricky Ponting [6]
April 2004  Australia Ricky Ponting [6]
April 2005  Australia Ricky Ponting [6]
April 2006  Australia Ricky Ponting [6]
April 2007  Australia Ricky Ponting [6]
April 2008  Australia Ricky Ponting [6]
April 2009  Australia Ricky Ponting [6]
April 2010  India MS Dhoni [6]
April 2011  India MS Dhoni [6]
April 2012  England Alastair Cook [7][6]
April 2013  South Africa Graeme Smith [8][6]
April 2014  South Africa Graeme Smith [8][6]
April 2015  South Africa Hashim Amla [8][6]
April 2016  Australia Steve Smith [6]
September 2016  Pakistan Misbah ul Haq [9][6]
April 2017  India Virat Kohli [10][6]
April 2018  India Virat Kohli [10][6]
April 2019  India Virat Kohli [10][6]

ICC World Test Championship

Year Final host(s) Final Ref. Winning Captain
Venue Winners Result Runners-up Player of the match
2019–2021 England England Rose Bowl,
Southampton 		 New Zealand

249 & 140/2

New Zealand won by 8 wickets
Scorecard 		 India

217 & 170

New Zealand Kyle Jamieson [11][12][13] New Zealand Kane Williamson
2021–2023 England England The Oval,
London 		 Australia

469 & 270/8d

Australia won by 209 runs
Scorecard 		 India

296 & 234

Australia Travis Head [14][15][16] Australia Pat Cummins
2023–2025 England England Lord's,
London 		TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Behind the scenes: Making of ICC Test Championship Mace presented to New Zealand". June 23, 2021.
  2. ^ a b Savory, Logan (July 27, 2021). "World Test Cricket Championship silverware en route to Invercargill". Stuff.
  3. ^ a b c "A royal touch for Test world champions". www.dailymirror.lk.
  4. ^ a b "How The Mace For The ICC World Test Championship Winner Was Created | Watch Video - News18". www.news18.com.
  5. ^ Oberoi, Saatvik (June 23, 2021). "How The World Test Championship Mace Is Made And Who Won It?".
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r "A retrospective: How the mace has changed hands". www.icc-cricket.com.
  7. ^ Wilson, Andy (August 14, 2011). "Andrew Strauss to receive ICC mace for England's world ranking success". The Guardian.
  8. ^ a b c "Smith presented with Test mace". ESPNcricinfo.
  9. ^ "Pakistan wins the ICC Test mace for the first time". September 21, 2016.
  10. ^ a b c "India retain Test Championship Mace for third year in a row". April 1, 2019.
  11. ^ "World Test Championship final: New Zealand beat India on sixth day to become world champions". BBC Sport. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
  12. ^ "New Zealand crowned World Test Champions after thrilling final day". International Cricket Council. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
  13. ^ "India v New Zealand: World Test Championship final, day five – as it happened". The Guardian. 22 June 2021. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
  14. ^ "Australia vs India | ICC World Test Championship | ICC". www.icc-cricket.com. Retrieved 2023-03-14.
  15. ^ "Australia crowned ICC World Test Champions with win over India". International Cricket Council. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
  16. ^ Gallan, Daniel (11 June 2023). "World Test Championship final: Australia beat India by 209 runs – as it happened". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 June 2023.