"He informed us of his decision today. I requested him to play this season too, but he didn't want to block a youngster's place," Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) president Ravi Savant told TOI on Wednesday.
The 35-year-old Agarkar took 288 wickets in ODIs and 58 sticks in Tests. He was a part of Sourav Ganguly's team that reached the final of the 2003 World Cup, though he didn't get a game in the event, and was a member of MS Dhoni's 2007 World T20-winning team too. Agarkar's best moment came in 2003 when he took six for 41 at Adelaide to fashion a rare Test triumph for India on Australian soil.
For Mumbai, Agarkar was always the man of the hour, notching up match-turning all-round performances with bat and ball.
"I thought about it long and hard. You need to be able to push yourself, in terms of keeping fit and I was finding it difficult to do that. I also realised that I didn't have a chance to play for India," Agarkar told TOI on Wednesday. " The timing is perfect. The energy and motivation to play the game isn't there anymore," he reflected.
Many felt Agarkar didn't do full justice to his vast potential. The seamer doesn't agree. "I ended up getting close to 300 ODI wickets. If at the start of my career you had told me that I'd get that many wickets, I'd have laughed at you. So I can't complain now! I am happy that I tried my guts out each time I bowled," he said.
Critics also say he didn't fulfill his promise with the bat. "I was always picked as a bowler. I am not disappointed."
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