South Africa’s David Miller has spoken out about his feelings after his defeat to India in the final of the 2024 T20 World Cup. Miller was at the non-striker’s end when Heinrich Klaasen brought South Africa within 30 runs of victory with 30 balls remaining by smashing 24 runs off Axar Patel in the 15th over.
However, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Hardik Pandya put up an extraordinary chokehold on the South Africans after that which led to the latter needing to score 16 runs in the last over to win the match. Miller was on strike and carried all the hopes and while it looked like he had hit Pandya for a six first ball, Suryakumar Yadav swooped in, caught the ball, threw it in the air before his momentum took him over the boundary line, hopped back in and completed a stunning catch.
“I am gutted!! Really tough pill to swallow after what transpired 2 days ago. Words don’t explain how I am feeling. One thing I do know is how proud I am of this unit. This journey was an incredible one, with highs and lows throughout the entire month. We have endured pain, but I know this team has the resilience and will keep raising the bar,” he said in an Instagram story.
It was the closest South Africa had come to winning a major trophy since their readmission to international cricket in 1991, with the side famously being unable to go past the semi-finals of major tournaments over the years despite fielding some of the best teams in the world in the last three decades. Miller himself was part of the South African side that lost a hard-fought semi-final in the 2015 World Cup. In nine matches at the 2024 T20 World Cup, Miller scored 169 runs at an average of 28.16, with a half-century and strike rate of 102.42. His best score was 59*.
India had won the toss and opted to bat first. After being reduced to 34/3, a counter-attacking partnership between Virat Kohli and Axar Patel of 72 runs restored India’s position in the game. A 57-run stand between Kohli and Shivam Dube took India to 176/7 in their 20 overs. Keshav Maharaj and Anrich Nortje were the top bowlers for SA. Marco Jansen and Aiden Markram took a wicket each.
In the run chase of 177 runs, Proteas was reduced to 12/2 and then a 58-run partnership between Quinton de Kock and Tristan Stubbs brought back SA into the game. A half-century by Heinrich Klaasen threatened to take the game away from India. However, Arshdeep Singh , Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya made a fine comeback in death overs, keeping SA to 169/8 in their 20 overs. Kohli won ‘Player of the Match’ for his performance and announced his retirement from T20Is in the presentation ceremony. India captain Rohit Sharma later announced his retirement from the format as well.
