India and South Africa will once again face each other on February 22 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. This time for the Super 8 match of the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2026.
The memories of T20 World Cup 2024 are still fresh among cricket fans and perhaps even among cricketers. But Quinton de Kock clearly said that he is not fond of remembering painful moments.
India defeated South Africa to win the final of 2024 T20 World Cup
In the final of the 2024 T20 World Cup, it was another India vs South Africa encounter. The Proteas were very close to breaking their trophy deficit in ICC events. Even in the last moments of the match, experienced David Miller was present in the middle.
But it was the Men in Blue who snatched the silverware right in front of the Aiden Markram-led side. India won the match by 7 runs in the last over of the final match and South Africa was heartbroken.
Hardik Pandya and Virat Kohli turned the tables
On 29 June 2024, India won the toss and elected to bat first at Kensington Oval, Barbados, Bridgetown. Thanks to Virat Kohli’s 76 and Axar Patel’s 47, India scored 176 for 7 in 20 overs, which was not the best score posted by the team.
In the second innings, Quinton de Kock (39) gave a strong start to South Africa. Later, Heinrich Klaasen (52) and Tristan Stubbs (31) took the team closer to the finish line. At the crucial stage of the run chase, Hardik Pandya took the matter on his shoulders and took a few wickets in the form of Klaasen and Miller; Both of them were set batsmen. Miller’s departure left South Africa with no proper batsman on the pitch and they eventually lost the match by just a few inches.
We forgot about: Quinton de Kock
More than a year has passed since the match; Teams also went through ups and downs and changes. But South Africans are maintaining their mentality – leave the bad memories behind and move on.
“To be honest, after that game, we forgot about it. To be honest, none of us wanted to talk about it. We went home and went through our processes on how to deal with it. That’s pretty much it. We’ve never really talked about it,” Quinton de Kock said at the pre-match press conference of their upcoming match with India.
The upcoming match is equally important for both the teams. The winner of the match will increase its chances of playing in the semi-finals by a few points, while the losing team will have to win both the remaining matches to remain in the title race.
Read more: IND vs SA Preview – Match 43, Super 8 Group 1: Free Live Streaming, Pitch & Weather Report, Head-to-Head | t20 world cup 2026
