3 major highlights of Kieron Pollard's cricketing career
West Indian all-rounder Kieron Pollard retires from the International cricket nearly after playing for 15 years.
The West Indian destroyer/all-rounder, Kieron Pollard has bid goodbye to the international arena. The 35-year-old cricketer on April 20, 2022, announced his retirement from international cricket after playing for his country for 15 long years.
He said that the decision to quit was in order “to make room for those who will carry the game forward in West Indian colours”.
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In his long cricketing career, Pollard has produced some big knocks for West Indies. He was also the key player in the team that won the 2012 ICC T20 Cricket World Cup. He was also the first player to represent his country in over 100 T-20 matches. He was appointed captain of the both ODI and T20 teams in 2019.
Here is a snapshot of his records as an international player:
- Total ODI runs: 2,706
- ODI wickets: 55
- T20 runs: 1,569
- Wickets: 44
Here are three major highlights of his career:
1. THE 2012 ICC T20 CRICKET WORLD CUP
As a player, one of Kieron Pollard’s biggest achievements was the 2012 ICC T20 World Cup. A West Indian team that couldn’t win a world cup in nearly three decades, finally brought home an ICC trophy in 2012. Though Pollard scored only 2 off 4 balls, his presence in the tournament helped the team climb up the finals.
The West Indian team put up a total of 137/6 in 20 overs against Sri Lanka while batting first. Chasing the small title however, the Sri Lankan batting line-up crumbled against the likes of Sunil Narine, Ajantha Mendis and Darren Sammy. The team was all out at 101.
2. THE SIX SIXES
Kieron Pollard joined the likes of Herschelle Gibbs and Yuvraj Singh in 2021 when he hit Sri Lankan off-spinner Akhila Dananjaya for six sixes in a row. In the previous over, Dananjaya had taken a hat-trick after dismissing Elvin Lewis, Chris Gayle and Nicholas Pooran. But Pollard tore apart the Sri Lankan spinner in style. The team won the match with six overs to spare.
3. TIFF WITH THE ODEAN SMITH
The internal brawl in the West Indian camp has been a big dampener in West Indies cricket. It can also be one of the reasons why Kieron Pollard decided to retire from international cricket when he could have continued for a few more years.
In February 2022, when the West Indies team arrived in India to play three ODIs and three T20 matches, an angst among the team, against Captain Pollard and Coach Phil Simmons was reported in local media. During the same time, Pollard was accused of mismanaging pacer Odean Smith. Pollard was accused of not giving him overs in a match against England and after that only, cracks had started to develop in the team.
The West Indies board later rubbished this, calling it a malicious attack on the captain and attack on West Indies cricket.
Apart from this, Pollard has had his tiffs with the West Indies board over payments also. In 2014, he was axed from the team along with Darren Sammy and Dwayne Bravo over differences with the board. The team had also opted out of the Indian tour after a fight with the Board.
But there is a good news for Pollard fans also. Though he has retired from international cricket but will continue to play at IPL for Mumbai Indians. The fans will still be able to see the Trinidadian hitter hit big shots out of the park.