Russell vs Pollard vs Bravo vs Narine: Which Caribbean T20 great has a bigger IPL legacy

Caribbean firepower - (Source: AFP)

It has been 17 years since IPL's inception, and the cash-studded league has emerged as the best cricketing league in the world. Cricketers across the globe have helped the league grow over the years, and the Caribbean talent, too, must be credited for their massive impact on the league.

In the formative years, Kieron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo, Andre Russell, and Sunil Narine shone for their respective teams, which paved the way for other top talents like Nicholas Pooran, Shamar Joseph, Shimron Hetmyer and Rovman Powell. 

In present times, the focus is on Andre Russell, who was released by KKR ahead of the upcoming season, ending an association of over 10 glorious years, which saw the right-handed batter lift two IPL titles.

Russell is touted as the finest Caribbean to have played the league, and there is a constant comparison with Pollard, Bravo, and Narine. Therefore, this article will shed light on who has had a bigger impact on the league out of these four players.

Russell vs Pollard vs Narine vs Bravo: IPL stats

Firstly, let's look at it in a general comparison of all four players and how they have fared in IPL cricket.

Key takeaways

• Andre Russell is doing great for himself as he is closing up on Pollard's batting record with few years still left in his tank. There is a minimal difference between Pollard and Russell's average.
• In strike-rate, Russell has overshadowed Pollard and has a scoring rate of 174, which is a requirement for a finisher like him. For the unversed, Russell has already outnumbered Pollard in sixes and has 223 maximums, one more than Pollard.
• Among the all four players, Bravo and Narine, despite being the bowling all-rounders, have an average of 22-23, but out of them all, Pollard and Russell are the better batters in the cash-studded league.
• Among the bowlers, Sunil Narine is head over shoulders ahead from the rest. The right-arm spinner has 192 wickets and only Bravo is close to him with 183 wickets. Further, Russell is ahead of Pollard in the bowling department.
• Interestingly, despite Narine being the leading wicket-taker, Russell has the best bowling average and strike-rate among all the Caribbean talents. The right-handed all-rounder has a strike-rate of 14.58 and average of 23.28, which signify that he is under-utilised as a bowler and KKR should give him more deliveries.

However, before making any judgement, it is also equally important to look at the players performance during playoffs and finals.

Russell vs Pollard vs Narine vs Bravo: IPL stats in final

Key takeaways

• Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo have done extremely well for their sides in the final. Pollard has averaged 45 with the bat, while Bravo has taken 10 wickets in the final. 
• Andre Russell has never batted in the final, while Sunil Narine has been absolutely clueless in the final, registering underwhelming performances. 

Final Verdict - Kieron Pollard the frontrunner

On an individual level, all four Caribbeans have been excellent, but Kieron Pollard, Andre Russell, and Sunil Narine are ahead of Dwayne Bravo. KKR's Russell has had an amazing contribution as he nearly matches Pollard's figures with the bat and has actually outshone Dwayne Bravo and Sunil Narine in bowling, despite the limited exposure he has got.

However, winning finals in an important criteria and out of all, Pollard has turned out to be most-impressive player, which gives him an edge over other stars because of him being a clutch figure.

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