'There's no point sulking around and making it more miserable than...': Aiden Markram opens up on 7-hour delay due to plane crash ahead of final

The schedule for ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024 has been under scrutiny. The travelling time has left very little time for teams to rest and practice ahead of big games. The same happened with Aiden Markram’s South Africa as they faced seven-hour delay due to an unfortunate plan clash before flying to Barbados for the final against India. Markram feels there is no point thinking about it now as other teams have struggled with it as well. 
 

"Yeah, we've had a couple (in Florida as well). I suppose a lot of other teams have gone through similar things. And we joke about it as a team and say, like, we're kind of used to it now,” Markram said in the pre-match press conference
 

"There's no point sulking around and making it more miserable than what it might already seem to be. So, it was a slightly longer day yesterday (laughs)."

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No time to reflect on journey

This is the first time South Africa have made it to a World Cup final. The captain said that the players have not had much time to think about it due to a packed schedule.
 

"You play a game, you get on a plane, you fly, you check in at a new hotel and play your next game of cricket the next day. So, I don't think there's too much reflecting that happens.
 

"But it's more the opportunity that we have of being in a final that sort of excites me quite a bit I think after the competition we will sit back and really appreciate what we've achieved so far as a team," the 29-year-old said.

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South Africa players hungry for a win

After several close games to reach the semifinal, South Africa dominated Afghanistan cheaply and winning the game by nine wickets. He went on to say that the players are hungry to win their first trophy.
 

"...you say, 'guys, we've still got one more step to go'. So, it's not driven by coach or by captain. The whole unit sort of feels that and is driven by that.
 

"...sportsmen are highly competitive people and nobody would want to lose, and especially not lose in a final. So, I think there's no sense that the guys are satisfied regardless of the result tomorrow. I think there's still a massive hunger for us to go out and win tomorrow's game," he concluded.
 

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