After making a couple of failed attempts at breaking through the July 8 high near 1.5242, the pound finally picked up enough steam to break through and break into territory that has not been seen since the first days of May.
But the Netherlands - who have never won the World Cup, despite a rich pedigree of world-class footballers - took the second half by the scruff of the neck, with Van Persie breaking free on a couple of occasions.
Djokovic produced a couple of fine returns on his way to breaking at 2-1 in the third set and from there on in it was a demolition, with Berdych powerless in the face of some sensational hitting.
Crane got his hat-trick just a couple of minutes into the second half with the number eight breaking off the back of a driving maul for Leicester's fifth try.
Even so, the iPad proved to be another ground-breaking product with sales topping billions of dollars in the first couple of months, bringing new life to a segment of the computer market that had until then been essentially moribund.