Although the heart-breaking loss to India in the Twenty20 World Cup final would haunt him for some time to come, Pakistani pacer Umar Gul said he is relieved to have come out largely unscathed in an event tailored for batsmen.
"I am proud of these 13 wickets. They mean a lot to me. First they helped my team do well and secondly they came in a form of cricket which is meant for the batsmen and not bowlers," Gul, who emerged as the leading wicket-taker in the championship, said on reaching home.

"Twenty20 cricket might be a batsmen's game but even then as a bowler you have to stick to the basics and mix up your bowling. I also tried to maintain a good pace," he added.

Gul hails from the Nawakheli hamlet on the outskirts of Peshawar in the North West Frontier Province, which is more famous for having produced a battery of squash champions, including Jahangir Khan and Jansher Khan.

But Gul said he always loved cricket and always dreamt of becoming a fast bowler.

"I know there is a lot of influence of squash in our ancestral home but I went for cricket as I found it more challenging and glamorous," he quipped.

Tags:- India   Jahangir Khan   Umar Gul