West Indies have appointed Nicholas Pooran as the new skipper of the ODI and T20I sides, after the retirement of Kieron Pollard.
Pollard recently announced his retirement from international cricket, with Pooran in line to take charge, having deputized for the all-rounder in the past. Shai Hope has also been recommended as the vice-captain of the ODI team.
Sir Viv said the Pollard has served the regional squad well and that his decision is respected.
“I guess he has felt like he’s had enough and I think he has done magnificent service to the West Indies’ cause. I have always been a fan and I say that because we were responsible for getting these guys involved, starting with the Stanford tournament where we [legends] were given the mandate to select these individuals”
“He was one of the guys who went on and just achieved great things and not just for his teams he would have played with around the world, but also for the West Indies team,” he said.
While Pollard is a feared T20 cricketer, one of the finest that the world has seen, his numbers for the West Indies remain underwhelming with only 2706 runs at just above 26 and 55 wickets from 123 ODIs along with 1569 runs from 101 T20Is at an average of shade over 25. He also took 44 wickets.
Meanwhlie, Legendary West Indies batsman Sir Vivian Richards believes that Nicholas Pooran is the right Player to lead the current West Indies players in the white ball format,
“There wasn’t any other choice in my opinion. I think the young man is pretty studious about what he wants to get done.”
“He takes his cricket pretty studiously and I am a fan of Nicholas Pooran. Early in his career I guess there was some immaturity but having been through the mill and where he’s at now, I think he is the perfect choice as captain,” he said.
Pooran previously led the sides in Pollard’s absence and All in all, Pooran has played 37 ODIs and 57 T20Is for West Indies, scoring 1121 and 1193 runs respectively.
Pooran will lead the side as the full-time white-ball captain for the first time in the three-match away ODI series against Netherlands, which will be a part of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League.