Always feared England would produce their best on biggest stage: Border

London : Former Australia skipper Allan Border said he always feared that England would produce their best on the biggest stage and they did exactly that against the Aussies in the World Cup semifinal.

"I always had a fear in the back of my mind that England would produce their best on the biggest stage. They did just that – and there wasn't much Australia could do," Border wrote in his column for the ICC.

"You have got to give credit where credit is due, England's performance was absolutely outstanding, and it was a performance that I have been anticipating for a while," he added.

The 63-year-old admitted that England put together a complete batting and bowling performance. "They were phenomenal in every aspect. The bowling in those first 10 overs is as good as we have seen from any team in this World Cup to put Australia under pressure. And from there they never really recovered.

"But England have been the favourites right from the start. Sure they have had their wobbles, but when it really mattered they came up trumps."