Even though he is happy for his teammates, speedster Ishant Sharma still feels the pain of not being a part of the Indian squad that made history after winning the World Cup last month.
"As a cricketer, it hurts when you see your teammates create history and find yourself not there in the mix. But as an Indian, I am proud of what they achieved," the 22-year-old said.
"It was emotional for me as well. After 28 years, India won the World Cup. I think that was huge."
Ishant, selected in the national squad for the upcoming tour of West Indies after being overlooked for the World Cup, expressed happiness at his return and said he would take the opportunity to cement his place in the side.
"It is nice to be back in the one-day side. The West Indies tour will be a good platform for me to do well and cement my place in the team," said the lanky pacer who has taken 90 Test and 63 ODI wickets in 31 and 45 matches, respectively.
Tons by Dilshan, Strauss in warm-upLondon: Centuries by captains Tillakaratne Dilshan and Andrew Strauss in a practice match have set the tone for an exciting Test series between Sri Lanka and England beginning May 30.
{{/usCountry}}Tons by Dilshan, Strauss in warm-upLondon: Centuries by captains Tillakaratne Dilshan and Andrew Strauss in a practice match have set the tone for an exciting Test series between Sri Lanka and England beginning May 30.
{{/usCountry}}Sri Lankan captain Dilshan struck a fine 123 against Middlesex Sunday following his counterpart's patient 151 in the same match Saturday.
Dilshan joined the national squad last week after his stint with the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the ongoing Indian Premier League. The practice game here is the first one for Strauss since England's quarterfinal exit from the 2011 World Cup.
Strauss, who resigned from the one-day captaincy to focus on his Test career, said he is excited about the Sri Lanka series also involving a T20 game and five ODIs.
"There are some really exciting challenges for us in Test cricket over the next two or three years - Sri Lanka and India this summer, South Africa next year, I think we have India away from home, and then two Ashes series, so there's plenty to float my boat," Strauss was quoted.