Martin Guptill walks out of a Manchester hotel pushing his daughter's pram, then loading it onto the waiting team bus.
As he hoists her pink bag from the seat and makes his way inside the carriage, the Black Caps opening batsman's face appears much more relaxed than it has been throughout the entire Cricket World Cup.
The opening batsman credits his family as being key for him remaining sane, while he has felt heaped with pressure during the all-encompassing tournament.
"When you come home from training and your daughter yells, 'Daddy', and gives you a cuddle, you are not thinking about cricket for a second," Guptill said in an exclusive interview with 1 NEWS Sport's Guy Heveldt.
Guptill's best batting form hasn't been showcased, and there have been calls for him to be dropped.
However, during Wednesday night's seemingly unwinnable bowling effort against India, Guptill threw the match-determining run out of Indian superstar MS Dhoni.
He sprinted in from the boundary, to land a direct hit on the wickets, knocking off the stump when Dhoni was within inches of safety, clinching the game, and propelling the underdogs to the final.
Redemption was Guptill's.
A smile crosses over Guptill's face when he is asked about the run out.
"When it first came off the bat, I thought it went straight up, so I didn't really move straight away, and then I thought, 'I gotta go here'," Guptill said.
"So, I let the handbrake off.
"To be able to put the final nail in the coffin was pretty exciting," he said, recalling the throw.
Kiwi batting coach Craig McMillian backed Guptill. The ginger haired player was a consistent performer over the years for the national side, has frequently produced match winning innings.
"He hasn't had the World Cup he would have wanted," McMillian said.
Under-performing had been mentally and emotionally trying for the batsman.
"It was great to see a smile and some hugs around Gup, because he's been doing it tough.
"I think that will flow into his batting and give him some confidence."
Guptill made the decision to stay away from social media for the past few weeks, avoiding the keyboard warriors.
"There's just no point. They don't know what you are going through," he said.
However, Guptill hasn't been able to avoid all commentary.
"It's bloody tough. You try not to read what people are writing, and hear what people are saying, but it's hard to get away from it.
"The hard work [behind the scenes] probably goes unseen."
As per usual, he has trained extensively in the nets. Even that recently has left him feeling "wanting".
"I have always put in a lot of time in. For it not to be working out in the middle, it's frustrating.
"People can say they were frustrated with me, but no one is as frustrated as what I am."
The pitches have been difficult for making strokes, Guptill said.
No team has had to chase more than 250 runs in the tournament, he said to illustrate his point.
But Guptill believes redemption isn't only his. The Black Caps stand a chance at winning top honours.
"If we can put all out facets together for one final game, we will be unbeatable."
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