It’s been 53 days since the heart-wrenching loss in the T20 World Cup final, and the question on everyone’s minds is: How is Aiden Markram holding up? “I should give it as much time as it needs,” he revealed during a press conference from Guyana on Tuesday. “It was a tough one to swallow at the time. Definitely since then till now, it’s got a bit better to handle; to deal with and to process and put to bed.”
Markram was candidly addressing the emotional impact of June 29 at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados, where South Africa’s men’s team reached the T20 World Cup final for the first time in history, only to be narrowly defeated by India by seven runs. The loss was a bitter pill to swallow for a team that had battled valiantly to secure their place in the final.
India’s victory by such a thin margin underscored the heartbreak. Winning and losing six of their other 184 T20Is by the same margin and 21 by fewer runs was one thing; but this was different – this was the World Cup final. “Luckily I was able to take some time to get away from the game, get away from cricket conversations that would spark the discussion once again,” Markram explained. “It was nice to get away from that and to reset. Each individual processes it pretty much to themselves. Probably the most important thing is making sure you’re at peace with how it all ended. So that you can move on and move forward.”
Now, South Africa is back in the Caribbean, ready to face the West Indies in a three-match T20I series starting Friday in Tarouba, Trinidad. Among the squad, Markram, Reeza Hendricks, and Tristan Stubbs remain from that fateful final XI. Markram and Stubbs have already been active, participating in the recent Test series against the Windies which South Africa won 1-0 under the leadership of Temba Bavuma, who also captains the ODI side.
Markram, who serves as South Africa’s T20I captain, reflected on the transition between being a team member and a leader. “It’s not a hell of a big deal for me. The decision-makers, especially from a white-ball point of view, remain consistent.
. That allows for continuity in the team,” he noted. “Faces will change and squads will change, but it’s important that we keep driving a consistent message to the guys and making sure that they feel backed as players. And that whatever they bring to the table is good enough for us as a team. So, it’s not too complicated. You take on whatever you get given and you try to make the absolute best of it.”
Looking ahead to the series in Tarouba, Markram is hopeful for a better outcome compared to the World Cup semi-final experience on the same ground. The ICC recently rated the Tarouba pitch as “unsatisfactory” due to its chronically inconsistent bounce. That same pitch saw South Africa dismiss Afghanistan for just 56 runs in the semi-final, cruising to a nine-wicket win. Remarkably, teams batting first were bowled out between the ranges of 40 to 95 runs in four of the five games played on that pitch during the tournament.
Conditions appeared more favorable in the warm-up match the South Africans played against a West Indies Championship XI in Tarouba before the Test series. That game saw substantial batting performances with two centuries and six 50s, leading to team totals of 397 and 408/9. Markram himself shone brightly, scoring 82 off 107 balls, with 56 of those runs coming from boundaries.
For Markram, days like those offer a glimmer of solace amidst the lingering sting of June 29. Even a 3-0 series win against the West Indies wouldn’t erase the memory of that World Cup final, but it’s a step towards moving forward. Part of moving on, Markram believes, is maintaining hope that this won’t be their only final and that there are happier, victorious days ahead. The lessons learned from defeat shape athletes, and with every match, they are inching closer to redemption.
As the South African team takes to the field once again, the eyes of their nation will be watching, hoping, and believing in a future where their cricketing dreams can come true. For Markram and his teammates, it’s about finding peace with the past and forging a path to a triumphant future.