'We've let a lot of people down' - Duminy

JP Duminy may have only just embarked on his international career, but he is already coming to terms with South Africa's lamentable record in ICC tournaments. Writing for the Independent Online, Duminy noted the "huge disappointment" of South Africa's first-round exit from the Champions Trophy, which came just three months after their failure to reach the final of the World Twenty20 tournament.

In both cases, South Africa were considered warm favourites to make the final, only for form to desert them at crucial junctures. South Africa have not won an ICC event since the inaugural Champions Trophy in Bangladesh 11 years ago, and must now wait until the 2010 World Twenty20 in the Caribbean for another chance to impress on the world stage

"The disappointment levels are huge, especially coming so close on the back of the T20 World Championship exit," Duminy wrote. "I took that defeat very personally, but this one has really hit as a team. After all the hype of coming into the Champions Trophy as the No 1 team in the world, and then to end last in our group is hugely disappointing. We know we have let a lot of people down. The tournament is in our backyard and we really wanted to give the people of South Africa something to celebrate.

"In the end, it was not to be. We've got no excuses because as a team we knew what we had to do. At the halfway stage, as a team, we believed we could chase down a record score at Centurion. We've done it in Test matches in Perth and Edgbaston and also in ODI cricket in Sydney over the last year.

"All we can do is learn from these demoralising defeats and hope when the next time comes around we can implement our skills under pressure."

Duminy predicted the Champions Trophy final would be contested by Australia and Pakistan. "I'm not much of a betting man, but I'm going for Pakistan," he wrote. "They are looking like the form team of the tournament."