Jofra Archer can be quick. He can be aloof too. Aftersplitting open Alex Carey’s chin, he didn’t immediately run up to the batsmanto check on him. Only when Chris Woakes was heading back to his mark afterbowling the first ball of the next over did Archer walk up to Carey. It wasabout timing. Archer knew exactly when the TV won’t be on him. He was worried,but he didn’t want the world to see. It just shows how this England team istruly different. Driven by the dogged ambition of reaching their first WorldCup final in 27 years, England were ready to play hard but fair.

This is usually Australia’s play —trying mind games on theopposition, strangling them with raw aggression. But England caught them offguard so quickly that Australia were forced to play catch-up after losing threeearly wickets. And it all started with Aaron Finch getting dismissed for agolden duck. It was that dreaded in-swing that did him in again. Archerdelivered it full, prompting Finch to shuffle across and fall prey to it.

When Woakes squared up Warner with a delivery that climbedon him from length, forcing a half-hearted fend. Jonny Bairstow at second slipdid the rest, Edgbaston was up and singing. Soon, Australia were 14/3 afterWoakes blasted through Peter Handscomb’s defences. There was still fight leftin them. But it came at a price. Steve Smith was made to hop around. For 15deliveries, he prodded, blocked and fished outside off-stump but couldn’tscore.

Carey was more brazen, driving Woakes for a boundary threedeliveries after surviving Archer’s hit. They stood together for 103 runs withCarey almost closing on a resolute half-century. But those huge squareboundaries came into play when he tried to flick Adil Rashid overdeep-midwicket.

Smith dug in. It took a moment of brilliance from JosButtler, picking the ball and dismantling the stumps at the non-striker’s end,to finally end his valiant knock. Run out on 85, Smith had provided Australiawith some semblance of respect after stitching partnerships of 39 and 51 with GlenMaxwell and Mitchell Starc.

Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow though made thosecontributions look paltry by punishing Australia from the first over. Leaninginto a crunching cover drive, Bairstow showed he meant business. Here, it meantnot allowing any of the Australia bowlers to settle down.

Starc came in for some early stick too. Roy flayed himthrough the covers, forcing Starc to pull back his length in the next over.Bairstow pounced on it, sending it whistling past point.

Starc then pitched it up and Roy just flicked it off hispads for a six over fine-leg. Bowling two different lines in the same over isoften the first signs of cracking. And England were intent on not letting theirfoot off the pedal.

None of the bowlers were spared. First ball of Nathan Lyonsaw Roy deposit it in the stands. Three balls later, he slapped him throughbackward point for a boundary on the reverse. At one point, Bairstow was tryingto distract Behrendorff with a shimmy just before he was about to bowl. Havinggot a hang of Australia’s bowling, and with an eye on the approaching cloudcover, England set sights on finishing as quickly as possible.

Starc was thrashed for three boundaries, prompting Finchto summon Smith’s leg-break skills. Roy reacted by smoking three consecutivesixes—twice over long-on and one dead straight— to nip that experiment in itsfirst over. Had Bairstow not wasted a review, Roy could have used it to provehe hadn’t got a touch on the Pat Cummins’s short delivery going down leg. Butthe mood had been set by then. England were cruising.

Eoin Morgan’s transition into Roy’s role looked seamlessas Joe Root and he chewed through Australia’s bowling to ensure Sundaywitnesses the anointment of a new world champion.