South African skipper Aiden Markram opened up about his team’s narrow defeat against India in the T20 World Cup final at Barbados in June this year.
Chasing 177 to win, South Africa were cruising when Heinrich Klaasen (52 off 27) was at the crease. After Klaasen’s wicket, however, they lost the plot as the Indian pace trio of Jasprit Bumrah (2-18), Hardik Pandya (3-20) and Arshdeep Singh (2-20) pulled things back in the last five overs to restrict the Proteas to 169/8 in 20 overs.
David Miller was in the middle when South African needed 16 runs in the last over. He attempted to hit Hardik’s first ball for a six but was caught at long-off by Suryakumar Yadav, who pulled off one of the best catches in the history of the tournament.
Miller’s dismissal was the final nail in the coffin as Pandya had to deal with the South African tail-enders for the remaining five deliveries.
It was a tough pill to swallow for the Proteas and Markram is looking to give himself as much time as needed to move on from that heartbreak.
"I should give it as much time as it needs," he told a press conference in Guyana on Tuesday (August 20) after South Africa’s Test series win over the West Indies.
"It was a tough one to swallow at the time. Definitely since then till now, it's got a bit better to handle; to deal with and to process and put to bed," said Markram.
The South African captain revealed that he took some time away from the game to make sure that he wouldn't have to deal with any conversations regarding the T20 World Cup 2024 final.
“Luckily I was able to take some time to get away from the game, get away from cricket conversations that would spark the discussion once again. It was nice to get away from that and to reset. Each individual processes it pretty much to themselves. Probably the most important thing is making sure you're at peace with how it all ended. So that you can move on and move forward,” he remarked.
In the wake of the T20 World Cup 2024 final loss, South Africa travelled to West Indies for a two-match Test series. While the first Test ended in a draw in Trinidad, the visitors won the second match in Guyana by 40 runs to clinch the series 1-0.
South Africa will now face the West Indies in a three-T20I series, starting August 23. All three matches will be played at the Brian Lara Stadium in Trinidad.
