The Proteas, who entered the championship match unbeaten, were visibly crestfallen after falling short in their quest for a maiden T20 World Cup title. Tears welled up in the eyes of experienced campaigners like David Miller, Kagiso Rabada, and Quinton de Kock as the reality of the narrow loss sunk in. However, as the South African team boarded their bus, a heartwarming moment occurred. A few Indian supporters, present at the Kensington Oval, broke into a spontaneous cheer for the defeated team, acknowledging their valiant effort. A video going viral online shows the South African players and their families heading towards their bus, looking downcast. As they walked, Indian fans surrounded them, chanting "We love you South Africa" in a gesture of support.
Watch video here:
The South African team, led by Aiden Markram, came very close to winning. They needed to chase down 177 runs in the 2024 T20 World Cup final. They seemed in control after 15 overs, needing just one run a ball with six wickets remaining. However, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, and Arshdeep Singh orchestrated a stunning turnaround for India with their brilliant death bowling. South Africa ultimately fell short, finishing at 169/8 after 20 overs.
"Gutted for the time being. It'll take some time for us to have a really good reflection on a really good campaign the group had. Obviously for the time being, like I mentioned, it hurts quite a bit. Having said that, I'm incredibly proud of this group of players and everyone involved with the team," Speaking at the post-match presentation of the 2024 T20 World Cup final, South African captain Aiden Markram said.
"I feel they bowled well. Don't think there was a whole lot to work with with regards to the pitch. Thought they did well to restrict them to what we thought was a chaseable total. Thought we batted really well as well, and it came down to the wire. Really good game of cricket. We've seen with a lot of our games in this campaign - it's never over till the last ball is bowled. We never got comfortable, there's always an element of scoreboard pressure. And especially at the back end, things happen quite quickly and can turn quite quickly as well. Having said that, we got into a great position which proves we're worthy finalists. Could've won the game today. Unfortunately, we didn't," he added.
