West Indies’ star all-rounder Kieron Pollard has been one of the finest cricketers that limited overs cricket has seen. At his prime, he was brute force with the bat while being able to take on opposition bowling units with the ball. Pollard has also played an important role in the history of Mumbai Indians and has been a fundamental part of the most successful franchise in the Indian Premier League.
He has been a part of five title-winning sides with Mumbai Indians but at 34, age seems to be catching up to him. West Indies white-ball captain, Pollard shocked the world by announcing his retirement from international cricket last month. He has also failed to get going in IPL 2022 and has looked pedestrian this season, especially as far as batting is concerned.
Pollard has managed just 144 runs in 11 innings at an extremely underwhelming average of 14.40. He has batted at a strike rate of 107.46 and his form has taken away much of the security that he once brought to the MI middle-order. As a result, the five-time IPL champions are lying at the bottom of the table with just two wins in 11 games.
Former Indian cricketer Wasim Jaffer reckons that Pollard is not the same player he once was. The West Indies great has not been able to take on the opposition bowlers in the final overs, a role that he played to perfection for Mumbai Indians in the past. He also added that Pollard has followed almost a similar routine in every game and thus, has been unable to outsmart the bowlers which has been the primary reason for his failure.
“Kieron Pollard is definitely not the same player he was a few years ago. If you see his performance in 2021, it was decent and nothing great. At his batting position, he has the responsibility of playing a small cameo but has not been able to do that this season. He has not made enough runs and has a strike rate of 109,” said Jaffer on Sky247.net presents ‘Not Just Cricket’ Show.
“He doesn’t try to sweep or scoop the balls, and bats according to his plan. But in today’s time, you need to outsmart the bowlers, which is what other people are doing. If you get 20 balls in the final few overs, you need to score at least 35-40 runs,” he added.
