What a relief to reach the final! The last half hour of our semi-final on Friday was my most nerve-wracking on the cricket field. I don’t think me and my teammates have too many nails left on our fingers today.
Mike Hussey was sensational and I don’t think anyone else could have pulled us through. With ‘Huss’ out there the side were not prepared to give up even after Cameron White had departed after a brilliant knock.
When Mitchell Johnson reached the middle the only instruction passed on was to hit the ball over the fence. Getting 60 off the last four overs was not easy by any stretch of imagination but once Mitch got his first ball away for a boundary we never looked back.
We always knew Pakistan were a dangerous side. Our start was a poor one and it ended up as a very bad day with the ball.
The law of averages was bound to catch up after our new ball bowlers had done brilliantly in the tournament so far. This is not an excuse but it is good to get this blip out of the way before the final.
The team were keen on keeping the momentum going and our record perfect. After the match we had a serious look at the way we bowled and fielded on Friday.
Our skipper Michael Clarke is going through a rough patch with the bat. It bodes well for the team that we can still win matches without him.
Clarke is relatively inexperienced in the T20 format of the game compared to batsmen like David Hussey, White and David Warner. The boys have confidence in his ability and are supporting him all the way.
Pup is not a big hitter of the ball and his role in the team is to steady the game in the middle by knocking the ball around. But his poor form has not affected his captaincy and he is always about the game every ball.
It is all set up now for a cracking final on Sunday. I think everyone will agree that the two best teams in the tournament will be facing off for the title.
Australia have been unbeaten so far and England’s only defeat in the T20 Worlds was in their opening match — courtesy the Duckworth & Lewis method in a rain-reduced match.
Kevin Pietersen has been spectacular and they have bowlers like Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad and Ryan Sidebottom in good form as well. KP might be the best England batsman by some distance but it would be a mistake to only target him. Craig Kieswetter and Michael Lumb have impressed at the top of the order while Eoin Morgan is also a dangerous batsman coming in lower down.
It will be good to play the final at the Kensington Oval. We have played some of our best cricket in Barbados and hopefully the quicks will find the track once again to their liking. We are one step away from becoming champions and victory is always that much more sweeter coming against England.