The whole summer of 2005 is a memory that seems like a fairy tale - and that is how it felt at the time, too, something special that drew everyone into an almost unreal narrative, from the opening session at Lord's to the closing drama of The Oval, with all the twists and turns in between. There were so many surreal moments it was as if someone had written this beforehand, given the script to the players and defied them to do otherwise. I was ghosting the Australian's coach John Buchanan for the Observer that wonderful summer, which gave me deep-throat access to the workings of a wonderful team, with all its strengths and weaknesses. If there is a single moment that stands it is probably sitting in the Australian dressing room with Buchanan immediately after they had drawn the fifth Test and, of course, lost the series - the greatest series in the history of the game. Players moved about with eerie resignation, chatting normally but devastated none the less. As Buchanan gave me his final tour report, he made special mention of Shane Warne, who was not exactly his greatest fan. As Buchanan spoke in glowing terms of Warne's efforts that summer, a weird smile played on his lips. I turned around and there was Warne listening to every word. "Bloody right, too, Bucks," was all he said. Magic.
Kevin Mitchell
Kevin is the tennis and boxing correspondent for the Guardian and Observer.
Memory added on July 11, 2014
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