New Zealand players will go into Sunday's World Cup final inspired by two Black Caps greats: one, Daniel Vettori, probably playing the last match of his international career; the other, terminally ill Martin Crowe, possibly watching the last match of his life.
NZ captain Brendon McCullum on Saturday conveyed his and his teammates' appreciation for an article written by Crowe, who is stricken by lymphoma, a blood cancer. Even though the 52-year-old led the Black Caps to the semi-finals of the 1992 World Cup, for which he was widely praised, he hailed this progression of this Black Caps team to Sunday's final at the MCG as "without question ... the personal cricketing highlight of my life".
"My precarious life ahead may not afford me the luxury of many more games to watch and enjoy. So this is likely to be it. The last, maybe, and I can happily live with that," Crowe, who will attend the match, wrote in his ESPNcricinfo column.
"To see the two sons I never had, Ross Taylor and Marty Guptill, run out in black, in sync with their close comrades, drawing on all their resolve and resilience, will be mesmerically satisfying. I will hold back tears all day long. I will gasp for air on occasions. I will feel like a nervous parent."
Crowe lauded the significance of the current Black Caps players for taking NZ passed a World Cup semi-final for the first time.
"Without the long trek endured previously, these men would not have the stomach to think so big. It has been a team effort, going back to 1975, and it will remain one. I will be there to share my gratitude at seeing a baton carried with such brilliance and daring," he wrote.
Captain McCullum paid tribute to the stoicism of Crowe.
"Obviously what he is going through at the moment is incredibly difficult," he said.
"We had him involved in the group not so long ago ... he came and spent some time with the team, and that was great."
"He seems to have really found peace with himself and the game as well, and he's been instrumental in helping some of our guys within the team peel back their games and really focus on being able to develop individually but also buy into the team [ethos] collectively."
"He's been a really big asset, and there's many [other] guys as well who have assisted guys individually, which has helped the team collectively."
McCullum lamented the dire outlook for Crowe, and expressed hope that he was "able to find some peace in the time that he's got left".
Sunday's match is also expected to mark the end of spinner Vettori's 18-year career. The Black Caps' medical staff have worked tirelessly, as has the player himself, in the hope the 36-year-old could overcome a nagging Achilles injury and a long-term back injury in order to reach one final, crucial tournament.
Former Queensland batsman and now state-team physiotherapist Martin Love said last summer's Big Bash League campaign had showed both the extent of Vettori's physical struggles and his determination to play and perform despite them.
"He showed his courage to continue to bowl through the season with a debilitating back condition. His determination is certainly one thing we've admired with him at the (Brisbane) Heat," Love said.
"There was a game in Adelaide where he was OK during training and on the morning of the game he was OK. He opened the bowling for us an his first or second ball the first step after bowling triggered off the pain in his back. He'd hit the batsman on the pads and turned around trying to appeal and couldn't get back up."
Vettori went on to take 2-10 from his four overs, which Love considered to be an example of his "courage and dedication to the cause".
Sunday's match will be Vettori's 295th one-dayer for NZ. Despite his age, and uncertainty for much of the past year over whether he would be fit to play, the left-arm fingers-spinner has rivalled South Africa's Imran Tahir as the best spin-bowler of the tournament. That high level of impact has not, however, surprised McCullum.
"We've marvelled all through his career. He's a tremendous ambassador for the game in New Zealand and also worldwide. I think right throughout his career he's played in the right spirit. He's given over half his life to this game," McCullum said.
"He's been an outstanding teammate and a very close friend as well. When the curtain does come down on his career he'll have a lot of fond memories and close mates from his time in this team. He's been instrumental to us getting to this point in the tournament and it's no surprise to me that he's been able to play in every game because he's worked so hard to get back. He had this as his vision and his dream, to be able to make an impact on the game that he probably hadn't quite made albeit everything else which he'd done in his career."
"It's testament to the guy. He's a tremendous character and a great bloke, and a strong leader in the group. It would be nice for not just him but the other blokes as well to achieve the ultimate success."
