West Indies head coach Phil Simmons insists he understands and respects the decision of recently retired captain Kieron Pollard but insists the player’s passion and desire will be sorely missed.
After nearly 16-years representing the regional team and three years in charge of both the One Day International (ODI) and T20 squads, the 34-year-old Pollard announced his decision to step away from international cricket last week.
“Skipper it is sad to see you retire from the maroon shirt so early…I completely understand,” Simmons said, addressing the issue via Facebook.
“Your ability to give players your backing and trust to deliver and your strong leadership both on and off the field was a joy to work with,” he added.
I was very much involved with Kieron Pollard’s early days at Queen’s Park Cricket Club. He was part of a group of young cricketers that Paul Clarke, a loyal teacher at Tranquillity Government Secondary School and cricket enthusiast, would send to the club annually, in October, when the club had its screening of cricket talent, for those interested in joining as cricket colt members.
Pollard’s group was evaluated in 2002. Needless to say, he was accepted. At that time, his bowling caught the eye more than his batting did. In the indoor nets, with its shortened bowlers’ run-up, the already six-foot-tall Pollard, a well-built young man, looked menacing.
However, his batting talent emerged. Recognition grew swiftly that he was a superb timer of the ball who played in an orthodox manner with a straight bat. A natural cricketer, he learnt quickly. His fielding was exceptional. His ground fielding was safe and sure, his throws to the wicket were powerful and direct and lots of the catches he took were spectacular. There was no one better.
MUMBAI, India (CMC) — Veteran former West Indies all-rounder, Dwayne Bravo, claimed two wickets but Chennai Super Kings’ (CSK) bid to kick-start their campaign fell flat with an 11-run defeat to Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League here Monday.
Chasing 177 at the Wankhede, CSK finished on 176 for six from their 20 overs, marking their sixth defeat in eight games to be one from bottom of the standing on four points. They are only above the winless Mumbai Indians who feature Bravo’s former West Indies teammate, Kieron Pollard.
Kings, meanwhile, lie sixth on eight points. Opting to bowl first earlier, CSK failed to contain Kings Man-of-the-Match Shikhar Dhawan top-scoring with an unbeaten 88 from 59 deliveries and Bhanuka Rajapaksa carving out 42 from 32 balls.
MUMBAI, India (CMC) —Brendon McCullum on Saturday underscored West Indies superstar Andre Russell’s value to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), following their disappointing defeat to Indian Premier League leaders Gujarat Titans.
Russell snatched four wickets for four runs in his only over as Titans posted 156 for nine at the DY Patil Sports Academy, and then returned to blast a 25-ball 48 with half-dozen sixes as KKR came up short by eight runs.
“The way our bowling line-up is set out, we’ve got three outstanding seamers and two world-class spinners so [Russell] is our sixth bowling option,” said McCullum, in his third season as KKR head coach. “He’s very much there when we need him and with that last over [today] he was obviously called upon and he did a fantastic job.
Amidst speculation over what prompted West Indies white-ball captain and all-rounder, Kieron Pollard, to suddenly retire from international cricket, some observers will probably argue that it came a few months late.
As a limited-overs specialist who built his career on power hitting and supported it with medium-pace bowling, the burly Trinidadian carried an air of authority.
Having made his international debut 15 years ago to the month, Pollard, who celebrates his 35th birthday on May 12, had his admirers and detractors alike.
He took over as the West Indies white-ball captain in September 2019, replacing Jason Holder in One-Day Internationals and Carlos Brathwaite in Twenty20 Internationals.
After West Indies as defending T20 champions failed to reach the semi-finals in the United Arab Emirates and Oman last November, coupled with his disappointing batting, there were calls in several quarters for Pollard to be fired as captain.
