Durban, Mar 3: Cricket South Africa (CSA) on Monday congratulated its players for their "magnificent" performance of reaching the finals of the Under-19 World Cup in Kuala Lumpur.

The South Africans lost to India by 12 runs on Duckworth/Lewis method in the rain-affected final on Sunday.

"On behalf of CSA and the South African nation I want to congratulate our U-19 team for putting a brave fight. I must also congratulate India for holding their nerve to win their second U-19 trophy," CSA CEO Gerald Majola said.

"When the match resumed, the South Africans required a run-a-ball 99 runs in just over 16 overs on Duckworth/Lewis method for victory and they were just 13 runs short as they could only muster 103/8," he said.

"It was disappointing not to win at the end, but I must commend coach Ray Jennings and his management team for building such a team that stood its ground against a leading cricketing nation of the world.

"I am confident that we have put the right building blocks in place for this team to grow and be the feeder to the Proteas," he added.

The players will return home on Tuesday.