DUBAI: Matthew Wade needed a stroke of luck to propel Australia to the Twenty20 World Cup final but he refused to turn it into a turning point in their dramatic semi-final win over Pakistan on Thursday.
Chasing 177 for victory, Australia needed 22 runs from the last two overs as Pakistan side entered the semi-finals as the only team of the tournament to have a perfect group record.
Hasan Ali dropped Wade in Shaheen Afridi’s final over and the Australian wicket-keeper responded with three consecutive sixes to seal a memorable win with one over to spare.
Wade was adjudged man of the match for 41 not out in 17 balls and Marcus Stoinis scored an unbeaten 40.
“I think by the time the catch drop came down, I was pretty confident that we were in a really good position to score runs,” said Wade, 33.
“If it had happened three or four overs earlier, it would have determined the outcome of the game a bit more.”
Wade wasn’t too worried.
“I would still be pretty confident with Pat (Cummins) coming in and Marcus at the crease, that we could have done the job anyway,” he said. “I wouldn’t say that was the reason we won the game.”
Shadab Khan broke the heart of Australia’s top order with four wickets before David Warner made 49, but Stoinis got his chase back on track and Wade ended it in style.
“Marcus Stoinis played a great knock to help us take it to a total that we thought could be chased to the end,” Wade said.
He said, ‘The way he played, he enabled me to do what I did in the end. To be honest, the way Marcus Stoinis batted in the end was probably the turning point of the match.”
Warner was caught behind, though replays showed no lead and surprisingly, the opener did not review the decision.
“I think there was noise, he wasn’t sure. Maybe the handle of his bat clicked or his hand hit his bat,” Wade said.
“He didn’t think he hit it. But I think Glenn (Maxwell) heard the noise on the other end.”
Australia will face trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand in the final on Sunday in Dubai.
get all IPL news and cricket score Here