‘Om locket was my lucky charm’

I would say that my Om locket was my lucky charm throughout the competition. I hope it continues to be my lucky charm in the forthcoming tournaments.

Harbhajan Singh,Zaheer Khan and Sachin Tendulkar were very proud of you after the tournament. The trio spoke highly of you and Tendulkar and Harbhajan broke into tears when they hugged you.

All three of them are truly special to me. I have already spoken about Sachin. Me,Zak and Bhajji are from the same batch. We came into the side at more or less the same time. We were there in 2003,when we couldn’t win the World Cup,and in 2007,when we were humiliated in the first round. All of us have gone through the same set of emotions. We carry the same agony and pain. Zak’s first spell in the final is a proof of how far he has come from that 2003 first over. Both Bhajji and Zak are unsung heroes of this World Cup. We have been very close friends,and enjoy each other’s success and get sad at failures.

Your parents were very nervous during the World Cup. What would you like to tell them after wining the Cup?

My parents are my biggest strength. My mother is always nervous. She is so tense while I am batting,she doesn’t watch matches and keeps praying for me. During my bad times,she was my pillar of strength. She never allowed me to brood or think negatively. She had to deal with my mood swings and everything that comes with a tough phase. She tried to absorb as much as she could. I am so happy I could give this happiness to her. Talking about dad (Yograj Singh),it was an emotional moment for him to see me lift the World Cup trophy. As a cricketer he always wanted to do all this for the country. His friend Kapil Dev lifted the first World Cup for India,and now he is very happy to see that his son has done this. Whatever cricket I know,it’s because of him. So both my parents deserve the biggest compliment for my performance.

What music was playing on your iPod during the World Cup tournament?

Nothing special,it was on shuffle mode. It was a mix of devotional,jazz,rock and Hindi movie songs was playing. All I wanted was to soothe my nerves in pressure games and music relaxed me.