South Africa batter David Miller on Tuesday shared an emotional post on his Instagram handle following the Proteas’ seven-run loss to India in the 2024 T20 World Cup final in Barbados on Saturday. Miller sad that while the loss will hurt the team and their players, it has still been an “incredible journey”. “We set out to win the World Cup, but ended up being the runners up. Something that really does hurt, but what an incredible journey. So proud of this team and all we have achieved, we have broken barriers and may this be the start of new beginnings,” the 35 year-old wrote on Instagram.
“Thank you to everyone who has been rooting for us. We really appreciate the love and support over the last month,” he added.
South Africa, led by Aiden Markram, had entered the final on the back of an eight-match unbeaten run in the tournament. However, they faltered in the final hurdle, with Virat Kohli (76) and Axar Patel’s (47) knocks taking the momentum away from South Africa as India posted 176 on the board.
Quinton de Kock (39), Tristan Stubbs (31) and Heinrich Klaasen (52) led a valiant fightback from the Proteas but India’s pace trio of Jasprit Bumrah (2/20), Arshdeep Singh (2/18) and Hardik Pandya (3/20) were too strong for them as they finished their innings at 169/8.
Impact Shorts
View AllThis was South Africa’s maiden appearance in the final of a World Cup, irrespective of the format. Their only ICC trophy win till date remains the ICC KnockOut Trophy, which they clinched in 1998 under the captaincy of the late Hansie Cronje.
For India, this is their second T20 World Cup triumph and their first ICC title since 2013, when an MS Dhoni-led outfit had beaten England in the final of the ICC Champions Trophy.