South African captain Aiden Markram made history as the Proteas advanced to the T20 World Cup 2024 final with a resounding nine-wicket victory over Afghanistan at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy Stadium in Tarouba, Trinidad, on June 26. This marks South Africa’s first appearance in the final of a senior men’s cricket world cup, either in the 50-over or 20-over formats, breaking a streak of semifinal losses in the ODI World Cup (1992, 1999, 2007, 2015, 2023) and T20 World Cup (2009, 2014).
South Africa will play in the final of a senior ICC event for only the second time, with the first occurrence 26 years ago in the 1998 ICC Knockout Trophy (now known as the Champions Trophy), where they defeated the West Indies.
Aiden Markram’s Achievement:
Aiden Markram achieved a historic feat by becoming the first captain to lead his team to both an U-19 World Cup and a senior World Cup final (either 50-over or 20-over). He previously led South Africa to victory in the ICC U-19 World Cup in 2014, defeating Pakistan in the final at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
Markram joins a select group, including Virat Kohli and Sarfaraz Khan, as the only captains to have led their teams to finals in both the U-19 and senior men’s ICC events. Kohli led India to victory in the U-19 World Cup in 2008 and also captained them in the 2017 Champions Trophy final, while Sarfaraz Khan led Pakistan to the U-19 World Cup title in 2006 and the Champions Trophy final in 2017.
