Requiem for South Africa's dashed dream

"See you in the final." South African reporters at the men's T20 World Cup heard that often from Indian colleagues, especially after another win by Aiden Markram's team. The Indians said it as a certainty, as if it were preordained that India and South Africa would meet in the final. The South Africans would shrug—with good reason.

The team they cover had reached just one men's white-ball final in their history, dating back to the 1992 World Cup. One. That was the 2024 final, a heart-rending match India won by seven runs.

But this South African side was different. They refused to panic. They found ways out of difficult situations: surviving two super overs to beat Afghanistan, recovering from 20/3 to defeat India by 76 runs. They reeled off seven straight wins, the only unbeaten team in the tournament.

South Africa were expected to beat New Zealand in their semifinal at Eden Gardens. They had beaten them convincingly in the group stage. But that was in Ahmedabad, where South Africa played five of their seven matches. Their other games were against weaker sides. Had they faced stiffer competition earlier, the story might have been different.

New Zealand, meanwhile, had played across various venues and conditions. They knew they weren't invincible. Did South Africa think they were? Was that the difference in New Zealand's dominant nine-wicket win, sealed with 43 balls to spare?

No. All 15 South African players attended an optional training session in Kolkata, including Quinton de Kock, who rarely joins such sessions. Pre-match claims of arrogance from coach Shukri Conrad were misguided. Conrad speaks with refreshing candor—a welcome change from the usual rehearsed press conferences.

"We got moered. We got a proper snotklap. We chose a really crappy time to have a poor night," Conrad said post-match. His few words captured the defeat more sharply than any lengthy report. Assistant coach Ashwell Prince later volunteered to explain what went wrong—a sign of taking responsibility.

A key factor was losing the toss. Had South Africa fielded first on the slow, sticky surface, the match might have been more competitive. But New Zealand did nothing wrong. They used the conditions well. South Africa batted poorly. And Finn Allen played a blistering innings, scoring an unbeaten 100 off 33 balls.

That's cricket. It's tough when it happens to the team you support or report on—the team everyone thought would reach the final.

"See you in the final"? Maybe someday. Maybe never.