Australia have zeroed in on an important batting position ahead of the World Test Championship final against South Africa, which begins at Lord's on June 11.

In a recent conversation with The Grade Cricketer on Prime Video Australia, Pat Cummins said Steve Smith would bat at No.4

"I can confirm that Smudge will be batting at four. Everyone else, I'm not willing to, but I can confirm Steve Smith will be No. 4," the Australian captain said.

Smith, who has batted most of his Test career at No. 4, boasts 6531 runs from 120 Test innings at the slot, averaging 61.61. This includes 23 centuries and 26 fifties.

The former captain had also starred in Australia's triumph in the previous WTC Final in 2023, scoring a first-innings century that helped set the tone for a big win against India.

As they prepare to defend the WTC Mace, Cummins opened up on the prospect of becoming the first team to do so since the inception of the tournament in 2019.

"After winning (in) 2023, there's a lot of talk of trying to retain it. Go and defend it. It's not tangible until you actually make the final.

"Now that we've made it, it'll be pretty cool to win another ICC trophy. Playing at Lord's, it's a tournament that every other Test-playing nation is vying for, so it just signifies a good couple of years."

He also highlighted the challenges the tournament presented.

"I think it shows performance over two years. But there are varying conditions. Even in ICC World Cups, it's normally very similar conditions.

"A Test tournament, you've got to go and win basically everything at home, but for us, we had to go to Sri Lanka and win in really tough spinning conditions.

"Go over to New Zealand, and beat a really strong side at home. So, I think it shows that you've really got to be a complete team over a couple-year stretch to make the final.

"We just missed out that first year (2019-2021), but I think we are a better side now. We lost a couple of games at home. But, yeah, I think two (WTC titles) would be incredible. One, I think, is still a pretty good demonstration of how good we've been over the past few years."

Cummins believes the Temba Bavuma-led side have multiple match-winners to pose a challenge.

"They always seem to compete in every tournament. They've got a lot of experience... Rabada, Maharaj, Bavuma, they've played a lot of cricket over the years. They have really good fast bowlers."