Chasing 430 against England, Sri Lanka were already in trouble at 24-2. Their captain had been run out without facing a ball, and Harry Brook's record-breaking double-century had left them with a seemingly impossible task.
Yet inside the Sri Lankan dressing room, the belief never wavered, according to captain Kusal Mendis.
"Everyone believed we can do it," Mendis said after Sri Lanka completed the second-highest successful run chase in men's one-day international history in Rawalpindi on Thursday.
The team had regularly discussed the importance of showing character and backing themselves, he said.
Sri Lanka reached 430-8 with one ball remaining to win by two wickets, comfortably surpassing their previous highest successful ODI chase of 322.
The comeback began with Avishka Fernando and Pavan Rathnayake, who put on 166 for the third wicket after the early dismissals of Kamindu Mendis and Kusal.
Fernando struck 97 off 83 balls before falling just short of a century, while Rathnayake went on to make 130 off 106 deliveries.
But a key tactical decision helped turn the chase in Sri Lanka's favour.
Mendis said he and the coach had discussed the need to approach the opening overs normally before adjusting their strategy to the enormous target. They also decided to promote Dasun Shanaka to No 5.
The move paid off spectacularly.
Shanaka hammered 97 off just 50 balls, including eight sixes, sharing a 133-run partnership with Rathnayake in only 79 deliveries.
Even after both batters fell, Sri Lanka still needed 67 from the final six overs.
Janith Liyanage took charge, racing to an unbeaten 61 off 27 balls to bring the target within reach.
Sri Lanka needed eight from the final over, but Josh Tongue dismissed Dunith Wellalage and Eshan Malinga with successive deliveries to threaten one last twist.
Liyanage held his nerve, striking the winning six off the penultimate ball to complete an extraordinary victory.
For Mendis, who had watched the chase unfold after his early dismissal, the result vindicated his team's approach.
"Everybody showed character and took responsibility," he said, crediting the collective effort for the successful chase.
The victory eclipsed even Brook's 202 off 116 balls, the fastest double-century in ODI history, as Sri Lanka produced a chase surpassed only by South Africa's pursuit of 435 against Australia in 2006.