South Africa needed seven runs to win in the final of the tri-series against New Zealand, with Dewald Brevis on strike, making them favourites. However, they could only manage three runs in the final over, and New Zealand won the match.
Despite the loss, South African coach Shukri Conrad remained positive. “We played some really good cricket today but New Zealand have been the class side in the tournament, so hats off to them,” Conrad said during the press conference. “But I’m thrilled with the way we played. That’s no excuse for losing, but we did some really good things.”
South Africa played without several of their big players, including Ryan Rickelton, Aiden Markram, Tristan Stubbs, David Miller, Keshav Maharaj, Marco Jansen and Kagiso Rabada. Conrad looked satisfied with the performances of the replacements and felt they had used their opportunities well.
“The bulk of them laid down a marker at some stage during this tournament that they belong at this level and that they want to be a part of this team. It’s great when you can grow your strength or your depth, and I think we’ve managed to do that.”
He also said that while they want to field their strongest XI whenever possible, rest was necessary for senior players. “We want to play our strongest team whenever we can, and that’s going to be the case going forward. But our experienced guys, our guys who play across all formats, needed a break.”
The South African coach expressed full confidence ahead of the upcoming T20 World Cup and rated his side as a strong title contender. “When it comes to the T20 World Cup, I think whoever wants to win the tournament is going to have to beat us.”
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