Chris Cairns wasn't quite sure what he heard.
The jury foreman said "not guilty" on Count 1, the charge of perjury which Cairns alone faced.
He looked right, to his friend Andrew Fitch-Holland standing beside him in the dock.
Fitch-Holland sobbed with relief. He heard "not guilty" for Cairns. And acquittal for Cairns meant acquittal for him on the perverting the course of justice charge, before the foreman could even utter the words.
It follows that Cairns was acquitted of perverting the course of justice, too.
Only then did Cairns realise he was walking out of the Southwark Crown Court a free man. A wave of relief washed over him. The bag slung over his shoulder just in case he went to prison, will now carry his gear back on a plane home to wife Mel and their two children in Australia.
Nine weeks after they were selected in a panel of 16 and whittled down to 12, the jurors were discharged. Cairns and Fitch-Holland mouthed their thanks as they walked out.
Justice Nigel Sweeney formally released both men from the dock, a fish tank in the middle of Courtroom 1. Cairns sat down at a long bench behind all the lawyers, staring straight ahead in shock. Fitch-Holland walked to the back of the courtroom and put his arm around fiancée Ruth.
Once the formalities were over, Cairns shook hands with his defence team Orlando Pownall QC and Simon Ray. It was over.
Fifteen minutes later, the 45-year-old emerged from the building to address a phalanx of waiting media.
For nearly two months, cameramen and photographers have captured his every move - even his daily walk to Pret a Manger (a British sandwich shop) for lunch.
Now, Cairns was able to have his say without fear of affecting the jury.
First, he thanked the jury and then his legal team and others helping behind the scenes.
Exhausted after living in London for three months, he was looking forward to being reunited with his family.
Life had been hell for the past five years, since Lalit Modi first accused him of match-fixing in a tweet on January 5, 2010.
He had been "through the mill" and come out the other side.
But did the verdict vindicate him?
"I just think having been through the Royal Courts of Justice [the 2012 libel trial] and now the criminal system, it's a pretty robust system and the jury today came back with a not guilty verdict.
"You have to be careful because it's not a victory as such because a case like this, I really don't think there're any winners. It's been hell for everyone involved."
There were tears in his eyes at the mention of his family.
Mother tells of relief
Chris Cairns' mother has spoken of her relief this morning after the former cricketing all-rounder was cleared of perjury.
Sue Wilson said that she had talked to her son, revealing he was "very emotional".
"We're just really pleased and will be pleased to have him home for Christmas," she said from her Christchurch home," she said.
"He was very emotional. He thanked us for our support and said he'd see us soon.
"It's been years... pretty hard for everyone. It'll be good to get him back home."
Cairns has had "close family support around him all the way" and she said that would continue. "We've been there... we haven't been over there but we've been supporting him from here," she said.
It was a "shame" that he indicated he'd no longer be involved in the sport.
"[Cricket] has been his life for years and ours too... we've lived it for years, haven't we. It's such a shame, but it's his choice and we have to go along with that. It's very sad."
Ms Wilson wouldn't comment on whether Cairns had been vindicated by the decision and whether some people still cast doubt over his alleged role in match-fixing.
