The much-talked-about 2024 edition of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup will conclude on Saturday with South Africa locking horns against India at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados.
Aiden Markram’s men are on the cusp of creating history in the gentlemen’s game, as this would be the first time in the sports’ history that South Africa would be playing an ICC final. The team has been exceptional in the tournament so far, winning all the games and defeating some of the best teams of the current era.
As far as the Indian team is concerned, they are also unbeaten in the ongoing campaign with both batters and bowlers in good shape. While skipper Rohit Sharma is the top run-scorer for India, Arshdeep Singh has emerged as the top wicket-taker in a well-oiled bowling unit.
What has happened so far?
South Africa finished at the top of the Group D points table in the league round with four wins from as many matches. They followed it up with consecutive wins in the Super 8 round as well against England, West Indies, and Afghanistan by seven runs, three wickets, and nine wickets, respectively.
Meanwhile, it was against Afghanistan in the semi-final that the Proteas delivered their best T20 World Cup 2024 performance as they scored a completely one-sided victory by nine wickets. Batting first, the Afghan team was wrapped under 56 runs with Marco Jansen and Tabraiz Shamsi picking three wickets each.
Chasing the score, South Africa scored a win in 8.5 overs as Reeza Hendricks and Aiden Markram scored 29 and 23 runs, respectively.
Speaking of the Indian cricket team, they also finished at the top of the table during the league round and the Super 8 by defeating the likes of Pakistan, the United States of America, and Australia, among many others. Rohit Sharma & Men scored an impressive win against the England team in the semi-final to book a berth in the final.
The batters took the charge in the first innings as the Men in Blue smacked 171 runs in the allotted 20 overs, with the captain being the highest run-getter with 57 runs. Meanwhile, in the second innings, Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav took the charge as they picked three wickets each to help India by 68 runs.
Head to Head Record
The Indian cricket team has faced South Africa in a total of 26 matches in the shortest format of the game in the international circuit. Rohit Sharma & Men have an edge in the head-to-head records as they have won 14 games while the Proteas have emerged victorious in 11 matches.
A solitary fixture between the two sides ended without any result because of harsh weather conditions.
Key Players
Anrich Nortje (South Africa): Anrich Nortje has been the player to watch out for in the T20 World Cup so far with some stunning performances in his arsenal. He is the top wicket-taker for the team and overall occupies sixth place with 13 wickets in eight games at an average of 13.46.
The ace seamer was at his best during the semi-final match against Afghanistan as well as he picked two wickets, including Azmatullah Omarzai and Rashid Khan, at an impressive economy rate of 2.3. Therefore, the responsibility again lies on the shoulders of Nortje to deliver a match-winning performance and take South Africa to their first title win.
Axar Patel won the Player of the Match award against England in the semi-final
Axar Patel (India): Axar Patel has emerged as the key spinner for the Indian cricket team in the T20 Championship, even winning the Player of the Match award during the semi-final against England.
The 30-year-old delivered one of the best performances of his international career as he picked three wickets in the form of Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, and Jonny Bairstow while conceding only 23 runs in his four overs at an economy rate of 5.8.
Patel is expected to continue the stunning performance on Saturday as well against South Africa, as Kensington Oval in Barbados is likely to favor the spin bowlers.
Predicted XIs
South Africa: Quinton de Kock (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markram ©, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Tabraiz Shamsi
India: Rohit Sharma ©, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah
Prediction
Both India and South Africa have been unbeaten in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 so far and are coming into the final after scoring one-sided victories in their respective semi-final. Therefore, the two teams are expected to put up a great show.
However, India is likely to have an edge over South Africa in the marquee event considering their experience in the ICC events and better skill set as this would be the first time that the Proteas would be playing the final.