A Perfect Day

From the moment the Sydney Cricket Ground crowd gave Steve Waugh a hero’s reception, the second day of the fifth Ashes Test of 2003 evolved into one of Australian sport’s most special occasions … a perfect day. As he walked out to bat just before tea, Waugh knew his career was on the line. By the time the final ball of the day was about to be bowled, his reputation was restored; now he was within one stroke of his hundred. Waugh flayed the delivery to the boundary. This was one of those rare sporting moments when every fan remembers where they were when the famous four was struck. A Perfect Day features the full story of this amazing hundred, told by the man who made it and supported by excerpts from interviews with England captain Nasser Hussain, Waugh’s teammates Justin Langer and Adam Gilchrist, and media personality Andrew Denton. It also recalls the lead-up to the Sydney Test, focusing on why it was that Waugh’s cricket future was so debated, and an exclusive interview conducted in 2013, when he looks back with enormous fondness on one of the great sporting days of his life.