They knew they could do it. They knew it all along. But I never doubted them until the World Cup final. My belief that Australia simply could not win the World Cup was not due to a particularly low opinion of the team. Unlike many, I had no great problem with the squad that was selected, nor with the teams that were picked throughout the Cup. Maybe in Australia they could’ve challenged. Maybe five years ago these same players would’ve had it in them. But here and now, it was India’s World Cup, and second was the best we could possibly hope for. But against all my good sense, I was believing. Because what the Australians were doing – bowling with uncanny precision, fielding with relentless ferocity – was extraordinary. And somehow, despite spending the last six weeks completely at peace with my knowledge that it was impossible, on the day itself it had seemed quite feasible from the very start.
