Think of Ramesh Powar and the portly frame of the off-spinner immediately strikes the mind. Nevertheless, that&rsquo;s the perception which fans may have to change as the 35-year-old has shed 16 kilos to get back into shape ahead of the Ranji Trophy season with his new team Rajasthan. <img alt="Ramesh Powar" src="http://images.mid-day.com/2013/aug/Ramesh.jpg" style="width: 500px; height: 400px;" /> Ramesh Powar at his residence yesterday. Pic/Satyajit Desai and Powar during a training session at Wankhede on October 25, 2012. Pic/Bipin Kokate The back injury that he suffered last season made Powar conscious about keeping his waistline in check. &ldquo;After three months of rehab (January, February and March), John Gloster (former Team India physiotherapist) suggested that I lose weight. I had never missed matches due to injury so I followed his advice. I also wanted to ensure that I am totally fit before the new season starts,&rdquo; Powar told MiD DAY yesterday. &ldquo;I run daily for nearly one-and-a-half hours from my place in Mahim to the passport office in Worli. I do a bit of sprinting and aerobics training. I was 98 kilos when I started my training. I am 82 kgs now. I am confident of losing another five kilos once the season starts. The back is completely fine now. I have also started bowling. I am feeling the difference,&rdquo; he added. Powar has also maintained a strict diet. Known to be fond of vada pav, Powar has given up all junk food in the last four months. &ldquo;I prefer home-cooked food now. I am basically eating the right food. It was difficult to resist vada pavs, but I managed to stay away from them. I sometimes have it, but only after I successfully lost five or 10 kilos. It is a way to celebrate the achievement. &ldquo;A lot of people would say that I was bulky. I wanted to prove all these statements wrong. I wasn&rsquo;t hurt but I took it as a challenge,&rdquo; said Powar, who played only five matches in the last Ranji season for Mumbai after being sidelined due to injury. Regarding his sudden move to Rajasthan, Powar said: &ldquo;One of the selectors called me to attend a fitness camp of Ranji players at the Bandra Kurla Complex ground. It was quite funny to answer him because everybody in the team knew I was doing my training at BKC. I explained to him about my own fitness programme and told him that I could not run on hard surfaces at the indoor academy. As it is, I don&rsquo;t do a lot of weight training. I do more of aerobics. &ldquo;After playing for all these years, I didn&rsquo;t expect such a thing to come up. Everyone (at BKC) was aware about my training. I have been training in front of Sulakshan Kulkarni (Mumbai Ranji Trophy coach). So, this was really disappointing. I have played enough cricket to have the freedom to follow my own fitness regime. I have always been honest about what I am doing. &ldquo;I had no option but to go (to Rajasthan) as I felt targetted. I didn&rsquo;t want to be a survivor at the age of 35. I have never played my cricket thinking I have to take five wickets in order to play the next game. I have always played to win matches for my team.&rdquo; &lsquo;Won&rsquo;t miss Mumbai&rsquo; Powar, who toiled for over 13 years for Mumbai, said he would not miss the team atmosphere. &ldquo;I will not miss the Mumbai team. I had the best time when Praveen Amre was coach. For the last two years, I wasn&rsquo;t enjoying being with the team. So the fun was anyway not there. I knew it was time to move on. The positive environment was not there. &ldquo;Nobody bothered after I got injured. Only the MCA secretary would call up before a selection meeting to check about my injury status. That&rsquo;s it. Nobody from the coaching staff checked with me. These were indications that I was not required anymore and had to move on.&rdquo;u00a0

Mumbai off-spinner, who has lost 16 kilos, talks about shedding the flab as he gears up for a new Ranji Trophy stint with Rajasthan

How Ramesh Powar got back in shape

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How Ramesh Powar got back in shape

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