Trinbago Knight Riders captain Kieron Pollard said booing fans at the Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium in St Lucia spurred him on to deliver victory for this team.
Pollard smashed a brisk 52 not out (seven sixes) off 19 deliveries to steer his team to an exciting four-wicket win over St Lucia Kings in the Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League on September 10.
TKR needed 27 runs in 12 balls in pursuit of 188, and Pollard did not disappoint, demonstrating that he is still one of most destructive batsmen in T20 cricket. He struck four sixes off fast bowler Matthew Forde in the 19th over to swing the match in TKR’s favour.
Akeal Hosein hit a four off the first ball in the final over to seal the win, but it was Pollard's heroics in the previous over that decided the match, as TKR closed on 189/6.
Forde conceded 24 runs in the over, despite starting the over with a dot ball – a yorker that Pollard could not get away. The burly Pollard pulled Forde for six next ball to keep TKR in the hunt.
Pollard knew the result rested on his shoulders and he turned down a single off the third ball.
The decision proved the right one as the former West Indies captain dismantled Forde with three consecutive sixes to bring up his half century.
Earlier in the 18th over, Pollard showed experienced pacer Alzarri Joseph a bit of respect by not taking any chances. As a result, TKR only scored five runs in that over, before Pollard went on a rampage.
A former captain of the Kings franchise, Pollard said the hostility from the crowd added fuel to the fire.
In a TV interview after the match, he said, "Obviously for someone who has played for West Indies over a period of time (and) walking out to bat in St Lucia (where I) played, captained here as well, hearing the crowd boo, I think they can continue to do that throughout the entire tournament.
"In this stage of my career, I am just enjoying my cricket, and if they want to raise something from the inside, they can continue to do so. It is fine."
After the match, Pollard looked in the direction of the crowd and placed his finger on his lips and also cupped his ears, urging the crowd to boo more. It is not the first time he has had his battles with crowds during the CPL, and not the first time he has come out on top.
[caption id="attachment_1107892" align="alignnone" width="1024"] TKR captain Kieron Pollard bats during the 2024 Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League match between St Lucia Kings and TKR at Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium. - Photo by Ashley Allen - CPL T20/CPL T20 via Getty Images -[/caption]
In 2019, against Guyana Amazon Warriors, at Providence Stadium, Guyana, Pollard blasted 26 from nine balls to get the win. His entrance to the wicket was greeted with jeers from the partisan crowd. Unfazed, Pollard punished the Guyana bowlers and later thanked the boo-boys for the added motivation.
TKR will play Barbados Royals in their next match on September 13 from 7 pm at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados.
Pollard also captained the Barbados fra
