IN 2003 Adam Gilchrist stunned the Australian dressing room by walking against Sri Lanka in the semi-finals of the World Cup.

Over a decade earlier the seeds of that iconic moment were sown in a young Gilchrist’s mind.

In an enthralling interview on Bob – airing at 8:30pm Tuesday on Fox Footy – Gilchrist revealed the lasting impact a low key tour around the country had on him as a rookie rising through the ranks.

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Far from the world stage of international cricket, Gilchrist was on tour with the Australian Cricket Academy under the mentorship of Rod Marsh. His teammates included the likes of Justin Langer and Stuart MacGill and they were taking on state and territory second XIs around the country. One moment from that tour has stuck with him like a “dagger in the heart.”

Adam Gilchrist was on tour with Rod Marsh’s Australian Cricket Academy in the early ‘90s. Source: News Corp Australia

“There was this wily old leg-spinner bowling to me and I went back and played this cut shot and smashed it straight into the keeper’s gloves and got given not out,” Gilchrist, who will be commentating for Fox Cricket this summer, said. “I remember just disbelief that the umpire couldn’t give it out because it was such a big nick and they are all spewing. Mind you the leggie didn’t really react too much.

“I go on and get a hundred, and he comes in at the end of the day, and he’s like ‘well played mate.’

“And I said ‘I’m so embarrassed, sorry about that out there.’ And he said ‘oh, don’t worry about it. It obviously means more to you at the moment than it does to me.’

“That was like a dagger in the heart. At what cost do you do things?

“I didn’t at that moment, go ‘right I’m going to walk no matter what’, but I’ve never forgot. I didn’t have it as a crusade or campaign to do, but I suppose that wedged somewhere in the back (of my mind).”

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Adam Gilchrist gloves a ball to Kumar Sangakkara in the 2003 World Cup semi-finals. Source: AP

More than 10 years later, Gilchrist gloved Aravinda de Silva into the waiting hands of wicketkeeper Kumar Sangakkara. This time around the stage was much bigger. He knew he had hit it. The Sri Lankans knew he had hit it. But the man with the clicker did not.

Given a spot in the World Cup final was on the line, the decision review system was still years away, and walking was – and still is – an uncommon practice you could have forgiven him if he stood his ground. Most players would have. But something in the back of the opener’s mind told him to do the right thing.

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Adam Gilchrist: The voice in my head was emphatic. Go. Walk. And I did. Source: AP

It’s worth noting his decision to walk was down to more than just one moment playing for the Australian Cricket Academy. On Bob he stressed the role his parents played in instilling those beliefs in him, while in his 2003 book ‘Walking to Victory’ he cited the influence of several incidents in the 2002-03 Ashes.

“To see the umpire shaking his head, meaning, ‘Not out’, gave me the strangest feeling,” he penned. “I don’t recall what my exact thoughts were, but somewhere in the back of my mind, all that history from the Ashes series was swirling around.

Adam Gilchrist has signed up to be a part of the Fox Sports Cricket team. Source: News Corp Australia

“Michael Vaughan, Nasser Hussain and other batsmen, both in my team and against us, who had stood their ground in those ‘close’ catching incidents were definitely a factor in what happened in the following seconds.

“I had spent all summer wondering if it was possible to take ownership of these incidents and still be successful. I had wondered what I would do. I was about to find out. “The voice in my head was emphatic. Go. Walk. And I did.”

Not that the voice is always so persistent. Don’t expect him to be as honest against a taped up Slazenger.

“I’m not even slightly interested in walking in backyard cricket,” he said on Bob.

Watch the full interview between Bob Murphy and Gilchrist on Bob on Fox Footy at 8:30pm on Tuesday.