When the going gets tough, Waugh gets going

His view was that the Zen of Batting involved single-minded concentration, one ball at a time, whether you are playing club cricket, Test cricket or on this occasion a one-day international. Making consistent runs under pressure comes down to this simple yet complex process of extreme concentration and skill. The master, Steve Waugh, showed once again today, why he is the player who best personifies mental toughness in the international game.

The great player's in my view are considered great because they have the ability to make a difference, to put their hand up, when it really matters. The old saying, "when the going gets tough, the tough get going", is so relevant when describing the best players. It seems the premium players thrive on the opportunity to make runs or take wickets when it counts the most.

Steve Waugh today, and Brian Lara in the recent Test series in the Caribbean, are the latest examples of batting genius and mental toughness at its best. Under immense pressure that few people could truly comprehend, the great players find that extra edge which leaves them peerless within the game.

If New Zealand's run chase yesterday was brilliant then the Aussies effort today was simply awesome. Inspired by one of the outstanding centuries scored in one-day cricket, Australia must go into the semi-finals flying high. The partnership between the fantastic captain and the talented Ricky Ponting helped change the momentum of the game midway through the Australians chase. This momentum was maintained by the ever-cool Michael Bevan and the evergreen Tom Moody who once again showed the importance of batting depth in the one-day game.

As New Zealand deserved to progress through to the semi-finals yesterday, Australia fought a 'Rumble in the Jungle' type heavyweight encounter to deservedly stay in contention for the World Cup. While Zimbabwe will be disappointed to be knocked out of the tournament, they will take heart from an excellent campaign which saw them come so very close to a World Cup semi-final. In the end of the day every team had their destiny in their own hands and I believe the four contenders left standing are the rightful semi-finalists. Having lost two of their Super Six games, Zimbabwe would probably have considered themselves fortunate to have played in front of any of the remaining four teams.

Now that the semi-finals have been decided, the most interesting contest in my eyes will be to see who recovers best from tomorrow's certain hangover. By that I don't mean who will drink the most alcohol tonight but rather which team will be able to lift themselves for the next few days of preparation. After the pressure they both experienced during this afternoon's events, it won't be easy to come up again in a couple of day's time. Both Australia and South Africa are sure to be feeling different emotions after today's thriller with the losers having their confidence slightly dented and the victors needing to keep their winning streak going.

As the World Cup was a tournament invented to decide the world champions of the one-day game, it seems the battle to see who really is the most talented and mentally toughest team in international cricket has only just begun. After a long programme already, one more battle on Thursday will take us one step closer to seeing who is going to win the war and of course the Holy Grail known as the World Cup. If today is anything to go by the war is going to be decided by those with the most resilient characters.

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