By the end, as hard as it was to see, the top-seeded Federer and the second-seeded Nadal had produced so much brilliant tennis under pressure that it seemed the most normal thing in the world that Federer smacked yet another ace to get out of trouble or that Nadal hunted down yet another sharply angled ground stroke and ripped an off-balance passing shot for a winner.
He had the upper hand going into the final session but Murphy pulled a frame back, before Bingham's brilliant 102 under pressure put him three away from victory at 15-12.
Yet within this chaos of everyday life, our love solidifies into an unbreakable, brilliant diamond; under pressure, the mundane is transformed into the extraordinary.
He flicked the ball beyond Mokoena with a brilliant first touch but, under pressure from advancing keeper Jamie Ashdown, his shot lacked power and the defender was able to scramble back and clear the danger as the ball rolled towards the line.
Most obviously, Jos Buttler had a brilliant series, batting with verve under pressure and keeping wicket with unobtrusive efficiency, with no dropped catches and only two byes all series.
"They are an incredibly physical side, they have brilliant line speed, put teams under pressure and force teams into mistakes.
His contribution included a remarkable 60-metre clearance kick under pressure, one brilliant take under an attacking high ball and outstanding assists in both Wales tries.
"He's good under pressure, has brilliant groundstrokes and with nothing to lose at this event, he'll be a dangerous opponent".
" 'North by Northwest,' Alfred Hitchcock's new study of the vagaries of the nervous system under pressure, is the brilliant realization of a feat he has unintentionally been moving toward for more than a decade a perfect parody of his own work". Read more.
