(NewsNation) — India is looking to end their 11-year trophy draught in international cricket and South Africa is chasing its first men’s World Cup win at the ICC T20 World Cup final in Barbados Saturday.
The final showdown pits Indian captain Rohit Sharma against South African captain Aiden Markram, who both led their teams to the finals unbeaten.
Sharma’s India squad has calmly seen off opposing teams with dominant performances — with the bat and the ball — on tricky pitches in the U.S. and the Caribbean, reaching its third T20 World Cup final by eliminating defending champion England in a lopsided semifinal.
India has not lifted the trophy in this format since the inaugural tournament in 2007 and the team’s supporters are eager to move past last year’s defeat to Australia at the ODI World Cup final.
“We’ve been very calm as a team,” Sharma said. “We do understand the occasion (in the final) but for us, it’s important to keep calm and composed.”
Markram’s South African lineup didn’t panic in tougher game scenarios either, skittling first-time semifinalist Afghanistan for just 56 runs in the Super Eight to coast into the championship decider.
“It’s a personal and individual motivation that you get to a final, to earn the opportunity to hopefully lift the trophy,” said Markram. “But we all understand this game and how it works and how things can go for you, things can go against you, and you take that in your stride.”
Sharma is the only remaining active player from the India lineup that won the inaugural T20 World Cup in South Africa in 2007. Sharma, Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja were part of the squad that went close to winning the title in 2014 in Bangladesh before losing to Sri Lanka in the final.
Like Sharma, Markram has also led South Africa admirably throughout the tournament that started June 1, including nervy wins over Bangladesh and Nepal in the group stage.
In the championship final, India elected to bat first after winning the coin toss. However, the match could face interruptions due to rain.