"There's someone above putting the pieces of the puzzle together" - Marnus Labuschagne after his match-winning knock in 2023 World Cup final
Australia's middle-order batter Marnus Labuschagne stated that he believes in miracles, given the dramatic circumstances that paved his inclusion in the 2023 World Cup squad. The right-handed batter thanked the selectors for sticking by him and is grateful for repaying their faith.
Labuschagne played a central role in Australia's victory in the 2023 World Cup final on Sunday. He stayed unbeaten on 58 and stitched a 192-run stand with Travis Head, as the tourists chased down 241 with four wickets to spare.
Speaking to reporters after the match, Marnus Labuschagne recalled his journey as a concussion replacement during the South Africa tour to winning the tournament for Australia. As quoted by ESPNcricinfo, he said:
"It's hard for me not to believe in miracles. There's someone above putting the pieces of the puzzle together. I think unofficially I was dropped five times. I wasn't in the squad in South Africa, someone got concussed, I got an opportunity, got some runs and pushed my case. Then I got on the squad, and played 19 games in a row, since the first South Africa match. I'm very thankful to the coaches and selectors for sticking by me."
Contrary to expectations, Labuschagne had a decent tournament, mustering 362 runs in 11 innings at 40.22 with three fifties.
"I was quite nervous when I was waiting to bat" - Marnus Labuschagne
The 29-year-old also underlined his nervousness before walking out to bat in the final, but felt tuned up after striding on the field. Labuschagne said:
"I was quite nervous when I was waiting to bat. But when you get on the field, nothing really changes. You're watching the ball, and you just try and get in the zone, trying to focus, the noise sort of gets blocked out, it gets into the periphery, but it was loud. There was a bit of pressure there, but it was good. My mindset was you treat it like a Test match.
"When you're batting with Travis Head, there's usually no run-rate pressure. When you're chasing a lower total like 230 [241], unless you're really struggling, there's not going to be much run-rate pressure."
Meanwhile, Travis Head slammed 137 off 120, and deservedly earned the Player of the Match award.