India and South Africa, the two unbeatable teams of the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup will face each other in the final battle for the title on June 29, Saturday near the Caribbean Sea at Kensington Oval, Barbados. (Match Blog | Scorecard | Full Coverage)
India reached the final by defeating the defending champions England on Thursday, despite the looming threat of rain, by 68 runs. Captain Rohit Sharma led the charge as India posted a total of 171/7. Jos Buttler's team was dismissed for just 103 runs in 16.4 overs. Axar Patel received the Man of the Match award for his exceptional bowling performance, finishing with figures of 3/23 from his 4 overs.
With this victory, India secured their place in the T20 World Cup finals for the third time. This marks their first appearance in the summit clash since 2014. India had previously won the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007.
Speaking of South Africa, they made it to the finals of a World Cup for the first time in history. The Proteas secured their berth by beating Afghanistan by 9 wickets at the Brian Lara Cricket Ground on Thursday morning. Although, the Afghans won the toss, they were bowled out at a mere 56 runs in 11.5 overs.
This final match between India and South Africa is not just any ordinary tournament finale. The cricket world will witness a historic sowdown on Saturday as both teams have remained undefeated throughout their 2024 T20 World Cup campaign. Never before in history there has been a summit clash where neither team has tasted defeat even once in the season.
India began their journey in Group A of the 2024 T20 World Cup, where they competed against teams like USA, Pakistan, Canada, and Ireland, emerging victorious against all of them. They reached the Super 8s where Afghanistan, Australia and Bangladesh joined them later. Once again, the dominant India overplayed them all to advance to the semi-finals. They beat England, paving their way to the final. That is how incredible Rohit Sharma and Co have been.
Aiden Markram's South Africa followed a similar path to India in the 2024 T20 World Cup. Starting in Group D alongside Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Netherlands, and Nepal, South Africa asserted their dominance with victories over all opponents. Advancing to the Super Eights, they maintained their unbeaten streak by beating England, West Indies, and USA and reached the semi-finals to end the dream run of the Afghans. And, not to mention, to enter the history books, to enter the dream final.
