Twenty20 Cricket World Cup final: Black Caps v Australia. Video / Sky Sport
Aaron Finch had a confession to make.
All throughout the Twenty20 World Cup, the Australian captain had downplayed the importance of winning the toss.
Despite stats that showed how crucial winning the toss was during the tournament, Finch had insisted it wasn't a major factor.
Even before the final against the Black Caps in Dubai – where teams who win the toss and bowl first hold an astronomical winning percentage – Finch claimed he was "not too fussed" about how the coin landed.
That all changed when he spoke after Australia's eight-wicket win over the Black Caps, where Finch fessed up to his fibs.
"It did play a big factor, to be honest. I tried to play it down as much as I could because I thought at some point in the tournament I'm going to lose a toss and we'll have to bat first," Finch explained.
"But it did play a big part. You saw at the end there, the dew factor, the slow balls weren't holding in the wicket as much."
Aaron Finch of Australia lifts the ICC Men's T20 World Cup Trophy with his teammates after beating the Black Caps. Photo / Getty
It was the sixth toss out of seven that Finch had won at the tournament - "I don't know how I did it. Maybe it was just fate," he offered - and gave Australia an immediate advantage.
However, the Black Caps' 172-4 was still a solid total batting first, and Australia needed to bat well to win.
They did just that, and in such a fashion that it was hard for the Black Caps to lament too much on the fall of the coin, given Australia's impressive display.
Finch was impressed with how his bowlers restricted New Zealand early in their innings, and self-effacingly argued his dismissal was a turning point in the match, in Australia's favour.
"I thought the way that we bowled with the new ball in that power play was obviously really important. That first 10 overs to restrict New Zealand to 57. But we knew that one down, it was always going to be tough because the dew started to come down quite heavy which we had not seen at all in the tournament so far.
"The turning point was when I got out, for Mitch Marsh to be able to come in and play the way that he did. He was outstanding. That partnership with David [Warner] was brilliant.
"The way that they put the pressure back on the opposition was exactly what was needed."
