NEW DELHI: The captain of
South Africa
,
Aiden Markram
, was happy to see his team overcome a difficult course in the semifinal to advance to their first-ever
T20 World Cup
final even if he was certain that he did not want to play another game on this field.
The
Brian Lara Academy
stadium's deck allowed for a lot of movement off the seam, which South African quicks took full advantage of to bowl out
Afghanistan
for a pitiful 56 runs.
"If we reflect back on this wicket, we'll probably be pretty happy that we're not playing here again. T20 cricket as a whole, you want entertainment," said Markram in the post-match press meet after SA defeated Afghanistan by nine wickets.
Markram was thrilled to see South Africa triumph on a difficult pitch, according to PTI.
"The wickets that we've had throughout the competition have been pretty challenging. It's hard to tell that a wicket is not good because it can't just always be a batter's game.
"Having said that, still taking the positives we can. Wickets are tough. So, finding a way to win is probably the most important thing."
South Africa will now go to
Barbados
to play either
England
or India in the final.
"We've been doing it for most of our careers, you jump from venue to venue where conditions are quite different. So, it's again just adapting and playing the pitch and the game that's in front of you.
"We'll try to find ways to always take wickets with the ball and from a batting point of view try to get to a score that's defendable. Both teams have to play on the same wicket," he noted.
For now though, Markram wants to savor the sensation of going into a World Cup final match.
"The bits that we're realising now, it's obviously a really nice feeling. This team's been together for a long time now as a white ball group, and it's nice for us to get to a final.
"We feel and believe that we can compete with the best in the world and we can win trophies. It's nice for us to now have that opportunity."
The captain of South Africa stated that winning close games in the Super Eights and group stages gave them more confidence.
"You do get belief from winning close games and potentially winning games that you thought you weren't going to win.
"It does a lot for your changing room vibe. So, we'll take a little bit of confidence from that and see if we can put it to any use in the final," he offered.
In a sense, South Africa had made up for all of its previous mistakes in international affairs, but Markram maintained that the past was not discussed in the present team's locker room.
"We haven't spoken about it to be honest. I think it's a personal and individual motivation that you get to a final; to earn the opportunity to lift the trophy.
"So, if you reflect back, we couldn't get over the line in that semifinal (in the 50-over World Cup against Australia) and you look at tonight, a few things went our way. We managed to win the game and we found ourselves in the final."
The 29-year-old praised the South African bowlers for bowling Afghanistan out for a record-low 56 runs, which turned the semifinal into a lopsided match.
"The bowlers, the whole competition, they've been really good. Probably saving the batters on certain occasions. So, you have to give a lot of appreciation towards them.
Ten years prior, Markram had guided South Africa to the under-19 World Cup championship, but he wasn't really counting on that to help him this time.
"It's a really long time ago and my memory is not great, but you get a little bit of confidence and belief knowing you have done it on a certain level before. There are similar pressures that you have to deal with being in a final," he added.
Markram was also kind enough to recognize Afghanistan's outstanding performance in this competition.
"It's really cool to see. They have some of the best (players) in the world at the moment. So, they're really on a good track. Making a semifinal for them is obviously massive. I think they've inspired a lot of people back at home.
"I've seen some pictures that inspire us as well to try and make that difference to people back at home. I'm sure it's not going to be the end of them making knockout cricket," he concluded.
English (US) ·