MELBOURNE: World Cup final quotes from the Australia team after they defeated New Zealand by seven wickets in Sunday’s showpiece match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground:

“I thought it was a fitting farewell for Pup [Michael Clarke]. I wish he was there with me at the end. We said we wanted to play our best game at the end of the tournament and to win it three down is unbelievable.”—Steve Smith who was undefeated with a fifth successive fifty.

“You always dream about this as a kid and for it to finally happen, especially at the MCG, is amazing. When you get in a tournament it’s all about peaking at the right time, and the way we’ve played has been a credit to everybody.”—Aaron Finch

“The bowlers did their job really well and gave us a good total to chase. You’ve got got be positive and every game we’ve been 100 percent and done all the right things.”—David Warner

“The staff have been challenging us to play the perfect game and we delivered on the biggest stage. It’s been an amazing four weeks.”—Brad Haddin

“These players just keep fronting up for you day in day out. The support we’ve had has been unbelievable. The Anzac spirit lives on.”—Australia coach Darren Lehmann.

Published in Dawn, March 30th, 2015

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