The 2024 T20 World Cup final will forever be etched in the minds of Indian cricket fans. The Men in Blue defeated South Africa to lift an ICC trophy after 11 years under Rohit Sharma's leadership.
A crucial game moment came when South Africa needed 26 runs to win in 4 overs. India's wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant called in for medics to tape his knees. This wasn't necessarily to treat his knee, but rather to buy India some time and break well-set Heinrich Klaasen's momentum.
Speaking about the incident at the Great Indian Kapil Show, the Indian skipper said that Pant's intelligent move was one reason they went on to win the trophy.
"When South Africa needed 26 from 24 balls, there was a small break. Rishabh Pant used intelligence to pause the game. He had his knee taped, which helped to slow down the game. Which helped to break the rhythm of the batters. That was one of the reasons for our victory. Pant Sahab used his smartness and things worked out in our favour," he said.
Heinrich Klaasen looses momentum
As it turns out, Klaaseen, batting at 52 runs, did lose his momentum and gave away his wicket on the very next ball. Hardik Pandya bowled a wider delivery, which took the nick off his bat before going into Rishabh Pant's gloves. This was a big moment for India in the game.
The Proteas lost some more wickets and aided India to end their trophy drought of 11 years. David Miller's wicket in particular was the highlight of the game. Suryakumar Yadav, stationed at long-off, completed a stunning catch after throwing the ball into the playing area as he toppled over the boundary line.
With this historical win, Indian legends Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravindra Jadeja decided to retire from the game's shortest format, ending their T20I careers on a high.