New Delhi: India finally ended the ICC trophy jinx with a sensational victory over South Africa in the T20 World Cup final at the Kensington Oval, Bridgetown in Barbados. The exhilarating match saw both teams fighting tooth and nail for World Cup glory but in the end, India ran out winners by 7 runs while South Africa, once again, lived up to their reputation of ‘chokers’.
The ebbs and flows of the match kept both sets of fans guessing till the very last ball of the match. At one point, South Africa were cruising towards the 177-run target but some smart bowling from the Indians pegged the Proteas back.
India thought they had the match in their grasp after picking up two early wickets but Quinton de Kock (39) and Tristan Stubbs (31) added 58 runs for the second wicket to bring Proteas back in the match. Axar broke the partnership by dismissing Stubbs before De Kock and Klassen added another 36 to tilt the match in the balance. De Kock’s wicket in the 13th over swung the match in India’s favour. Or so we thought.
Klassen had different ideas. The power-hitter smashed Axar for 24 runs in the 15th over to give a sinking feeling to Indian fans. Suddenly the equation became highly achievable for South Africans, who now needed 30 off 30 deliveries. With two of the best ball strikers in the world at the crease, Indians feared the worst.
That’s when the pace battery stood up and powered the team to a historic title.
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With 26 needed off 24 balls, Rohit brought back Hardik Pandya into the attack and India were rewarded immediately. Pandya struck gold on the very first ball by removing Klassen for 52 (27) but with Miller on the crease, and Marco Jansen as the new batter, Proteas remained firm favourites.
But Rohit had ace in the pack in the form of Jasprit Bumrah. The ever-so-reliable bowler castled Jansen to spark wild celebrations in the Indian camp. The match again swung in balance but with four wickets in hand and Miller still at the crease, it was South Africa’s match to lose.
Indian pacers, though, had other ideas. Arshdeep Singh bowled a superb 19th over, conceding just 4 runs in the penultimate over to leave the Proteas stunned.
Rohit gave the responsibility to bowl the last over to Pandya, a player with whom reports of his rift were rife during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023. The star all-rounder rose to the occasion and dismissed Miller to put the final nail in the coffin of the unfortunate Proteas. Though the wicket belonged to Suryakumar Yadav, who took an astonishing catch on the boundary rope to send the crowd into delirium.
The wicket ended Proteas’ hopes and with it dreams of becoming world champions in their first-ever final appearance.
Not just in the match, Indian pacers made an impact in the whole tournament. Arshdeep Singh finished as the joint-highest wicket-taker with 17 wickets while Jasprit Bumrah finished in the third spot with 15 wickets.
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T20 World Cup final: When the chips were down, Team India’s pacers stood up and delivered the elusive world title for the country. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
