Kieron Pollard retires: Best of West Indies captain on the crease

Kieron Pollard on Wednesday announced that he is retiring from international cricket. In a 14-year international and club career en route to these records, Pollard has played for 14 different teams in all of the test playing nation T20 leagues except New Zealand and Sri Lanka. Here’s a look at his top 5 knocks:   

2012 World Cup semi-final

West Indies
faced Australia in the semi-finals and group stages of the World T20s in 2012 and 2014, respectively, and their
respective victories were undoubtedly their two most clinical performances in
both competitions.

Watching Kieron Pollard smack
Xavier Doherty in that 2012 semi-final provided a look into the past. He added –
“Coming up against Australia in
a World Cup T20 semifinal you don’t need more motivation than that.

“Chris Gayle was batting brilliantly,
and my job was just to finish, and I certainly did that. Overall, these are the
knockout games I’ve always prided myself in standing up for the teams I’ve
played with. That semifinal was one the early ones that helped me develop that
confidence to perform in such matches, all over the world in 501 games I’ve
played.”

Also read: Mumbai Indians take on Chennai Super Kings to remain afloat in IPL 2022

2012 against New Zealand

It’s not often that Chris Gayle
and Kieron Pollard, the two most prolific run scorers in T20 history, bat
together in domestic and international cricket. However, one of the few times
these two powerful six hitters did it in maroon was in sunny Florida in 2012, a
few months before the West Indies won their first T20 World Title.

Pollard recalls – “It was one
of those tours where you get an opportunity to play in Florida and just enjoy
the moment from a both a cricket and personal perspective where players can mix
game preparation with shopping and other stuff in a popular tourist
destination.

“I recall the conditions were
really hot walking out with Gayle going guns blazing. The first ball I faced
was hit for six and sometimes all you need is that positive feeling to get your
innings going perfectly, with everything hitting the middle of the bat and balls
hitting the gaps frequently.”

2019 T20 first half-century as West Indies captain

Kieron Pollard had his most
successful T20 batting season in 2019. He scored 1404 runs, only the fourth
time he had done so since his breakout 2009 season. This was also the ninth
highest total of runs scored in a T20 calendar year.

This level of performance and
maturity coincided with his appointment as West Indies captain, and he
celebrated his maiden T20 fifty against India.

The player said – “Despite it being in a losing effort, no
doubt it was a notable career moment to get my first half century leading the
West Indies team.

“It was nice to do it playing
for West Indies at the Wankhede Stadium where I’ve become accustomed to wearing
the blue for Mumbai Indians as well. This was a scenario that I and many others
may have thought highly unlikely, given how the well documented history of my
international career has gone.”

Also read: Kieron Pollard retires: 5 cricketers who called it quits before 35

2009 Champions League T20

Kieron Pollard was the
joint-biggest purchase at the IPL player auction in January 2010, with a
batting average of 11.30 from 15 ODIs and 17.20 from 10 T20Is. The Mumbai
Indians weren’t paying $750,000 for Pollard’s international record; they were
paying for his scary hitting power in domestic T20 competition, most notably
when he smashed 54 off 18 balls for Trinidad and Tobago against New South Wales
in the 2009 Champions League T20.

He added – “Teams weren’t
taking us seriously from the start of champions league since we were from the
Caribbean with our funky hairstyles and perceived laid back attitude, but we
knew what we wanted to accomplish.

“I recall coming into bat with
Ramdin (Denesh) with us under pressure in the run chase and having a few overs
to settle in.

“After he got out the rest is
history. I was in the zone and Moises Henriques was the unfortunate bowler that
day and that fifty while it didn’t revive my career since I was playing
international cricket for two years, it certainly gave me the confidence that I
belonged at the highest level after performing like that against a New South
Wales team full of players in the Australian team that were still dominating
international cricket.

2013 IPL final

Clive Lloyd, Ian Bradshaw, and
Marlon Samuels’ names will go down in Caribbean cricket history as their crucial
dramatic finals performances drove West Indies to their first 50 overs,
Champions Trophy, and Twenty20 World Cup victories in 1975, 2004, and 2012.

Kieron Pollard’s path to
becoming a legend in Indian cricket began in 2010 when he was named player of
the match as the Mumbai Indians won their first IPL title.

Pollard recalls – “An IPL title had evaded Mumbai ever since I joined the team in 2010 when we lost in the final to Chennai. 

“We were in a difficult position losing five wickets in the first 10 overs when I came out to bat, but given the individual I am with a never say die attitude and strong will to win, I stood up.

“That innings was just another indicator of me maturing in game situations, because I had to curb my natural instincts and bat with the lower order in order to get the team to a respectable total.

“So overall a very memorable game to have produced a man of match performances in a major final.”