“It’s not the first game of cricket that’s been lost with a team needing 30 off 30. It’s more that India are allowed to bowl well, they’re allowed to field well, they’re allowed to go from that position to a position of strength,” said Aiden Markram to the press.
South Africa were in a strong position, but they didn’t let it slip away; the opposition was “allowed” to play well, as Markram put it. In sports, if the other team outperforms you, they win. India outperformed them in the last five overs.
The brilliance of Jasprit Bumrah, who bowled two of those crucial overs, was a major factor. Hardik Pandya’s two overs were like a redemption arc, given all he’s been through since replacing Rohit Sharma as the Mumbai Indians captain. It’s no surprise Pandya had to wipe away tears before facing one of those intense interviews conducted while emotions are still high.
The pressure on India was immense, knowing this could be the last time legends like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli played in an India T20 shirt. The team might have also been aware of Ravindra Jadeja’s impending retirement. Despite the IPL’s impact on the format, it had been 17 years since India last won this trophy. This immense pressure was evident in the tears of relief that flowed once they secured the victory.
India deserved to win because they managed the stresses of the situation better and, as a result, played superior cricket. Did South Africa deserve to lose? This question was not important to Hashim Amla, part of a media panel with Russell Domingo and Chris Morris. Domingo and Amla, now on the Lions coaching staff, sat on either side of Morris, who claimed, “This is why these two do well at the Lions, because he [pointing at Amla] says you don’t deserve anything in this game, that the game owes you nothing. And this one [pointing at Domingo] says the game’s rude.”
It was the first ball of the final over, and although the target of 16 runs was daunting, the South Africans still felt they had a chance at victory, albeit not as confidently as they had four overs earlier. With Miller at the crease, his face reflecting the determination to finish the job, they had hope. However, that hope wasn’t enough when Yadav, with a nimble hop and skip on either side of the boundary, managed to get both hands on the ball, twice, and held on each time.
