Hyderabad: S. Sreesanth, India's man of the moment, felt "the weight of the world" on his shoulders as Misbah-ul Haq's scoop headed his way, with five runs required off three balls in that nail-biting ICC World Twenty20 final.

"It was not as easy as it looked. The moment the ball went up in the air, I said to myself 'Oh! God, not me again'. However, I composed myself to stick to the basics, never took my eyes off the ball and never lost my head after it safely landed in my hands," Sreesanth told this correspondent over phone on Wednesday amidst the hectic celebrations in Mumbai.

He was quick to add: "Thanks to the anticipation drilled in by fielding coach Robin Singh, I had made some ground the moment Misbah moved to knock it over."

Sreesanth was also the one to knock off Pakistan in the group match that India won with a bowl-out, and the victim again was Misbah.

Are we seeing an individual rivalry building within a team game? "Maybe," Sreesanth said. "I walked up to him after the match and said 'hard luck' and he replied, "all the best for the next match". India plays Pakistan again in November on home soil and expect more fireworks.

The volatile Kerala quick maintained that India and Pakistan players were good friends off the field. "We go out after any team on the field but nothing that happens on the ground goes outside the ground," he said.

At the team hotel, the squads were only one floor apart, India on the 19th and Pakistan on the 20th floor. "We bumped into each other frequently and we were friendly," Sreesanth said.

Sreesanth said he had set up a challenge for Pakistan. He told the Pakistan team's local manager after the bowl-out that should both sides reach the final, India would win again. "After the final, I clasped his hand and reminded him 'dekh liya? Maine bola tha na?' (Didn't I tell you)," Sreesanth said.

Sreesanth was amazed that he got the chance to close out tough high-pressure matches - the ones against Pakistan and Australia in the semifinals. "I don't know how I get connected with testing situations... maybe I am the chosen one," he laughed.

Sreesanth comes across as an aggressive bloke but away from the field life is song and dance. He has written two of the 10 songs in Desh, an album of patriotic songs cut by his brother-in-law Madhu Balakrishnan, South Indian playback singer.

Hyderabad: S. Sreesanth, India's man of the moment, felt "the weight of the world" on his shoulders as Misbah-ul Haq's scoop headed his way, with five runs required off three balls in that nail-biting ICC World Twenty20 final.

"It was not as easy as it looked. The moment the ball went up in the air, I said to myself 'Oh! God, not me again'. However, I composed myself to stick to the basics, never took my eyes off the ball and never lost my head after it safely landed in my hands," Sreesanth told this correspondent over phone on Wednesday amidst the hectic celebrations in Mumbai.

He was quick to add: "Thanks to the anticipation drilled in by fielding coach Robin Singh, I had made some ground the moment Misbah moved to knock it over."

Sreesanth was also the one to knock off Pakistan in the group match that India won with a bowl-out, and the victim again was Misbah.

Are we seeing an individual rivalry building within a team game? "Maybe," Sreesanth said. "I walked up to him after the match and said 'hard luck' and he replied, "all the best for the next match". India plays Pakistan again in November on home soil and expect more fireworks.

The volatile Kerala quick maintained that India and Pakistan players were good friends off the field. "We go out after any team on the field but nothing that happens on the ground goes outside the ground," he said.

At the team hotel, the squads were only one floor apart, India on the 19th and Pakistan on the 20th floor. "We bumped into each other frequently and we were friendly," Sreesanth said.

Sreesanth said he had set up a challenge for Pakistan. He told the Pakistan team's local manager after the bowl-out that should both sides reach the final, India would win again. "After the final, I clasped his hand and reminded him 'dekh liya? Maine bola tha na?' (Didn't I tell you)," Sreesanth said.

Sreesanth was amazed that he got the chance to close out tough high-pressure matches - the ones against Pakistan and Australia in the semifinals. "I don't know how I get connected with testing situations... maybe I am the chosen one," he laughed.

Sreesanth comes across as an aggressive bloke but away from the field life is song and dance. He has written two of the 10 songs in Desh, an album of patriotic songs cut by his brother-in-law Madhu Balakrishnan, South Indian playback singer.