Happy with zip I'm getting off the wicket: Irfan

"I'm really happy with my seam position, and I've done a lot of work on that. I'm really happy with the way things are going and the zip that I'm getting off the wicket," Irfan said here today.

Irfan, who turned out to be one of India's most successful bowlers in Sri Lanka early this summer, has often been discussed for lack of pace, but the bowler is not perturbed.

"A lot of people talk about my pace, but I'm generally never bothered. I'm not an out-and-out quick bowler. Everyone has their own gifts and I have my strengths and weaknesses as well."

When he arrived on the scene in 2003, the bowler was seen as the great Kapil Dev's successor, and the pressure seemed to have got to Irfan.

"This is what I've learnt throughout the year. I love playing, but sometimes you just put too much pressure on yourself by thinking about performance. Eventually you have to come down to the level where you love the game and you just play."

In Sri Lanka Irfan was nothing more than pedestrian in terms of pace, but what brought him success was his ability to work out the batsmen.

"I've tried to learn a few tricks in terms of thinking out the batsmen. The more experience I have, the better I'm getting in terms of that. I think that long term, that's what I want to keep working on. I will do whatever the team needs."