A Kiwi expat who confirmed himself as one of the planet's staunchest Black Caps fans with a 55-hour round-trip from London to Melbourne had no regrets last night about embarking on his monster journey.
Peter Thompson boarded his Singapore Airlines flight at Heathrow Airport at 10pm GMT Friday to find himself - with the exception of an Indian man on his way to Singapore - the only cricket fan on the plane.
After turbulence and cricket-filled dreams kept him awake most of the trip, broken only by a two-hour stopover, he arrived in Melbourne to find the fevered atmosphere had justified the odyssey.
"At first I felt kind of lonely thinking, 'Am I the only mad bastard doing this?' But then coming into Melbourne, I immediately had no doubts."
Mr Thompson, who spent yesterday morning catching up with friends before heading to the Melbourne Cricket Ground for the big showdown, told the Herald he was happy to say a bad outcome of last night's game would not have spoiled the 34,000km adventure.
"There's no doubt this has been a good decision," he said shortly before the game.
"Even just for the excitement I felt on the flight, and the feeling in the days leading up to it, it has been worth it."
If he had any regrets, it wasn't the cost - clocking up to around $9700 - but that it couldn't last longer. Early today, he was scheduled to be on his way back to London in time for a meeting with his boss this week.
The cricketing Marco Polo said his workmates would forgive him for any severe case of jetlag.
"Everyone at work has been so supportive of me.
"Really, there has been good vibes all around."