Agarkar aspires for big things

TRELAWNY, Jamaica, March 6
Indian paceman Ajit Agarkar is looking forward to playing an important role in his third World Cupafter the first two ended in disappointment.Agarkar, 29, India's mostexperienced new ball bowler with 272 wickets from 180 one-day games, played aminor part in 1999 when India failed to reach the semis and did not get a gamefour years later in South Africa where they reached the final.However, a goodrhythm over the past season coming to the Caribbean has raised hopes for Agarkarafter a career blighted by injuries and inconsistency.
"Try to play at least onegame, that is the first goal," Agarkar said.
"It is nice to get another opportunity."When you play a World Cup as a21-year-old you don't know whether you will get another opportunity," said theMumbai player who had not quite lived up to his early promise as a durablebowling all-rounder.In the 1999 World Cup, Agarkar picked up one wicket in eachof his three games, scoring one run in his only innings.He could not break intothe playing 11 in 2003 with the pace trio of Javagal Srinath and left-armersZaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra helping India reach the final.
Agarkar, expected to play a prominent role with Zaheer in the Caribbean,attributed his improved fitness to the recent good run."I've obviously gained alittle more experience in the last three to four years," he said. "The mindsettowards the approach to bowling has also changed.
"When you are young you wantto bowl a wicket-taking ball every time," he said. "The rhythm comes down toexperience and how well you know your body, getting stronger as you go on."WhenI started there was not a lot of fitness awareness then," the slim bowler said.
"I've had a few injuries and you sort of learn what your body's requirementsare."Agarkar admitted he had not capitalised on his batting talents, afterscoring a test hundred at Lord's and hit a 21-ball one-day fifty againstZimbabwe.
"I don't think at any point I was viewed as an all rounder," he said."Maybe a few reckless shots I played initially in my career, I might have done abit differently now."Agarkar has not played a test since the Pakistan tour inJanuary last year."I want to play both forms for the game for sure," he said."I'll keep giving good performances in one-day cricket to maybe get anopportunity in tests again." AFP