Mumbai, Feb 16: As per usual, the Mumbai squad is working as a rich source of talent for the national team. The highly rated Rohit Sharma is likely to be away on national duty for a while to come, but skipper Ajit Agarkar, who has represented India in 221 matches, is happy for the youngster. He hopes that top-order batsman Ajinkya Rahane, and paceman Dhawal Kulkarni, too would be recognised for their persistent efforts.

Named captain of the side for the Inter State One-Day League, Agarkar was upbeat about Mumbai’s chances of winning the trophy in an interview with bcci.tv.

On missing the services of Mumbai’s Rohit Sharma and Zaheer Khan

Zak’s actually not played for us that much [but] it’s always great to have him. Every time he has turned up he has picked up heaps of wicket; you would miss him. Rohit has been part of the squad for the past two or three years but you learn to live with this. We are actually quite happy that he is with the Indian team. You’d want a lot more guys from the team playing for India and that opens up opportunities for a lot of talented youngsters. Someone will obviously follow in his footsteps here. That’s always the aim.

On vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane

I don’t know my stats but he is probably the most consistent batter in the last three or four years. That’s how he has earned his place and he has done well in the limited opportunities that he has got for India. We are happy to have him but it would have been better if he was playing for India. I suppose only 15 are allowed in a squad. It’s another opportunity for him to get some runs and pile on the pressure on the guys who are playing for India. He is getting heaps of runs and that’s not easy to do.

On this tournament being an opportunity for the Mumbai seniors to win a title this year

Of course. Anything to add to the rich history that Mumbai. You want to win most tournaments that you play. Unfortunately, even if Mumbai reach a semifinal, it’s not considered good enough; for most states it would be an achievement. But those are the kind of standards that have been set over the years by various players who have played for Mumbai. Over the years we have not had a lot of success in the one-day format so this is another opportunity to play better.

On captaincy and grooming youngsters

You want to pass on your experience to the younger players in the team. [...] There are lots of guys who have represented India who are part of the squad; so it doesn’t matter who is the captain, really. As long as we play together, generally we get the results that the quality of the team deserves. I have played with most of the guys that are part of the squad already, so that’s not something new.

On whether he had watched any of the cricketers from the U-19 Mumbai team that won the Cooch Behar Trophy this year

Some of them. When you play a club game, you play against them, but because the matches are not telecast on TV, you generally don’t end up watching [them]. But it’s a great achievement to win anything which is at the national level. You’ve got play against some of the better teams in India [in such a competition], so it’s not easy. I have been part of the U-19 set up so I know it’s not easy. We won back in 1995-‘96 or ‘96-‘97.

On what young pacers should focus on

I guess whatever your strength is. If you have got speed, why compromise on it? If you are a line and length bowler, you don’t obsess about speed. You’ve got to make sure you don’t lose what strengths you have; that’s the first thing. Fast bowling in India is a very hard job. You’ve got to actually enjoy doing the hard yards not just on the field, but off it too you’ve got to keep your fitness levels up and if you enjoy that, you will have success as a fast bowler.

On the ongoing discussion regarding pacers compromising on speed

It varies from individual to individual. As a 30-year-old, you wouldn’t bowl like you did when you were an 18-year-old because you’ve already had those 12 years of bowling. A lot of wear and tear takes place but you don’t want to compromise early in your career because that’s your strength.

On the young fast bowlers in Mumbai

Dhawal [Kulkarni] has been performing really well for the last three or four years and I hope that at some stage he gets an opportunity. It’s not easy to run in day in and day out while bowling in a Ranji game, get wickets, and then not be recognised; it’s not easy. It’s tough because you play seven games in the league stage and three to get to the finals. Ten games in a season is a lot of hard work on our wickets. I think he has done really well in the last four years since his debut. He was in the squad [that went] to New Zealand [but] didn’t get an opportunity. Hopefully, there is [an opening] for him around the corner. He is definitely the leader of the attack at the moment for Mumbai.

On his career so far

Not bad. You should never be satisfied. You would probably do certain things differently if you had the kind of experience that you have now but I was fortunate enough to play over 200 games, Tests and ODIs combined, for India. I am fairly satisfied because it’s not easy being a seam bowler for India. I have kept myself relatively injury-free, luckily.

On maintaining his fitness

Early in your career, you don’t really know [much]. When I made my debut in ‘98, fitness awareness was not as [prevalent] as it is today. The guys coming through [now] at least come through the system and are a lot more aware, have done their work in the gym or trained appropriately. It took me a few years to actually know what needs to be done not just during the off-season but also when the season is on. [...] But the flipside is, you just went and played cricket as much as you could instead of worrying about the other aspects. That sometimes works in your favour as well.