It is all about winning matches for the team: Kieron Pollard

MI batsman Kieron Pollard was on song during the match against Chennai Super Kings in Delhi after he anchored his team to a win by 4 wickets while chasing a mammoth target of 219 runs. Pollard remained unbeaten at 87 off 34 during the course. 

Talking about his innings during the post-match conference, Pollard said that it is all about performing for the team and personal milestones don’t really matter. 

“It is all about winning matches for the team and not about personal milestones and this is what I have done. It is good to get out there, bat for a couple of overs and win it for your team. It was a total team effort,” Pollard said. 

Mumbai started off well after captain Rohit Sharma and wicket-keeper batsman Quinton de Kock gave them a solid start but a fall of quick wickets pushed them on the backfoot before Pollard and Krunal joined hands to provide the resistance. The West Indies batsman credited the three players for their efforts in the middle. 

“Partnership with Krunal was crucial while skipper (Rohit) and Quinton had given us that start and a couple of sixes from Hardik in the later part of the match helped us. It was a total team effort from a batting perspective,” Pollard who notched up the fastest fifty in the IPL 2021 said.  

“It is good to perform for the franchise. They believe in you and you perform for them. For me it is about trying to evolve everyday as a cricketer.,” he further added.  

Pollard further lavished praise on the CSK unit and admitted that it feels good to come out and perform against such an opposition.

“We (CSK and MI) have built this match up ‘El Clasico’ of the IPL and when you have experienced guys who have played so much international cricket like Dwayne Bravo, MS Dhoni, Faf du Plessis, Suresh Raina who have done it for the team time and again.” Pollard spoke about the clash of titans.

“You wanna come out and perform in these sort of matches and situations. For me, it is all about doing what is my strength and what the team requires at any given time,” he further added.

Talking about the required run-rate and the plan, Pollard said that he did have a close eye on the required run-rate. “Yeah, you have to keep an eye on the run-rate required and it is a matter of choosing the bowlers you can go after and more comfortable to hit. There are a lot of things that go in the mind but it is the matter of keeping yourself calm,” he said.

The Caribbean batsman revealed that the team did have a small chase before coming out to bat of what needed to be done. “We had a small conversation in the half-time and we knew how the pitch was. We knew if we stayed in there and had the foundation, we would have the armoury to come and deliver for us.” 

MI will now play SRH on Tuesday in Delhi. 



 

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IPL 2021 | MI vs CSK: What Experts after Kieron Pollard's carnage ends Chennai

Defending champions Mumbai Indians and IPL’s second-most successful side Chennai Super Kings produced an exciting encounter for the fans on Saturday in Delhi at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. Batting first CSK rode on some brutal batting from Ambati Rayudu who scored 72* off 27 that included seven maximums and four boundaries to post 218/4 in 20 overs. Apart from Rayudu, Faf du Plessis and Moeen Ali too chipped in with individual fifties to make valuable contributions with the bat. Jasprit Bumrah had a tough day at the office after he gave away 56 runs in 4 overs picking up one wicket, his worst figures in the cash-rich league. Apart from Bumrah, Dhawal Kulkarni was hit for 48 runs in his 4 overs while Trent Boult returned with figures of 1/42 in 4 overs. In reply, MI started off the chase with captain Rohit Sharma and Quinton de Kock putting up 71 for the first wicket before Sharma departed for 35 off 24. Mumbai then lost a couple of wickets more to get reduced to 81/3 in the 10th over before Kieron Pollard and Krunal Pandya joined hands to stitch a stand of 89 runs for the fourth wicket. Mumbai looked to have derailed in the fag end of the innings after Krunal was trapped in front of the stumps by Sam Curran for 32 off 23, but with Pollard in the crease, the show was not over. Pollard carried on with his carnage and hammered CSK bowlers all around the park scoring 87 off 34 that included 8 sixes and six boundaries. The right-hander West Indian batsman took MI over the line by 4 wickets, on the last ball of the match. The Calypso batsman was given a let-off after Faf du Plessis dropped a catch in the deep at a crucial stage, and he made full use of it in the final over, chasing 16 runs from the last five balls. Curran was the most successful bowler for CSK who scalped three wickets for 34 runs in 4 overs. Captain’s corner CSK captain MS Dhoni talked about the pitch and admitted that it did have a lot to offer to the batsmen and also pointed out that the dropping catches cost CSK the match. Faf du Plessis dropped Pollard at a crucial stage. “It was a brilliant wicket. The difference was the execution. Not being too tough on bowlers, we dropped catches at crucial intervals. The bowlers would execute better and learn from this. If you look how it went, we were very off target when it came to execution. It is important to do that. The wicket was easy to hit. In a tournament like this, you will win and lose a few close games. When you are under the pump, you learn a lot. Irrespective of where we are in the points table, we take one game at a time,” he said. Dhoni also hailed Pollard for his mind blowing knock and also appreciated Sam Curran for his bowling efforts in Delhi. “Pollard, literally, out-muscled CSK with the bat in his hand. With a small ground and a batting-friendly pitch to his advantage, the Caribbean kept hitting boundaries for fun. He smashed a 17-ball fifty and single-handedly took his team over the line. Curran bowled a brilliant 17th over and Ngidi kept doling out full tosses in the final over, but there was one decisive moment - Faf dropped the big man on 68 in the 18th over and the T20 veteran ensured that Chennai paid dearly for that. Mumbai needed 105 off the last 7 overs and Pollard pulled off a spectacular win. Hang around for the presentations,” he added. MI skipper Rohit Sharma lavished praise on Pollard’s match-winning innings and also hailed the team for the efforts in the middle. “Probably one of the best T20 games that I have ever been part of. I have never seen a chase like that before. One of the best innings from Polly. Brilliant to see that from outside. Very happy with the effort the boys put in. Good pitch, smaller ground, we wanted to stay positive once we finished those 20 overs. We got off to a decent start and then we saw what happened. We had a brief chat during the interval in which we said it's a good pitch, back yourselves. We've got shot-makers in our batting line-up, so we just wanted to go there and express ourselves,” he said. Rohit and de Kock started the proceedings well after putting up a partnership of 71 runs for the first wicket while Krunal Pandya and Pollard steadied the ship for the side after MI had few hiccups in the middle. “Talking about the same, Rohit credited Krunal and Pollard for the stand that brought them back on track. “A brilliant partnership at the top, then the Krunal-Pollard partnership was crucial to get to the target. When you're chasing a high score, you want your power-hitters to bat as many balls as possible. But we totally back Krunal to do the job as well. He's a good batter, he's batting really well, so we wanted to give him the opportunity. And left-handers always make a difference, they had an off-spinner but we wanted to make sure that they bat as long as possible and set the platform for guys like Polly, Hardik in the back end. It (Delhi pitch) suits our style of play. Yes, the bowlers will be under pressure but that's when you want to back your bowlers to get the job done,” he added. Experts’ opinion Commentator Harsha Bhogle labelled Pollard’s innings as incredible and also appreciated Sam Curran’s bowling performance during the course. Journalist Boria Majumdar also praised Pollard for his knock and said that he played an “excellent” inning to bring MI back into the game. Journalist Ayaz Memon was all in praise for MI for the way they chased down the total. TV journalist Vikrant Gupta explained why the clash between MI and CSK is called the ‘El Clasico’ of IPL. MI will now play SRH on Tuesday while CSK will be taking on RR on Wednesday in Delhi.

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Mumbai Indians pull off incredible heist as Kieron Pollard notches up fastest fifty in IPL 2021

Mumbai Indians pulled off an incredible heist as all-rounder Kieron Pollard notched up the fastest half-century in IPL 2021 going past the mark in just 17 deliveries. Chasing a huge total of 219 runs against Chennai Super Kings in Delhi, Pollard singlehandedly took the game away from Chennai scoring 87 off 34 deliveries. The right-handed West Indies cricketer had already scored 3 boundaries and 6 sixes as he reached his half-century. He then took the game by the scruff of its neck and finished with 6 boundaries and 8 sixes to take his team over the line. MI required 125 runs in their last eight overs at a rate of 15.63, from there on, Pollard went to hit the likes of Ravi Jadeja for three maximums in the next over. Despite losing shape late in the chase Pollard made sure that MI did not falter in the final over where the required 16 runs from the last 5 balls. He hit Lungi Ngidi for 2 fours and a six to take his team over the line. Earlier, MI were handed a target of 219 in 20 overs and the Rohit Sharma-led side began the proceedings well after the captain Sharma and wicket-keeper batsman Quinton de Kock put 71 runs on the board for first wicket before Rohit departed. Mumbai then lost few wickets in quick succession but Pollard joined hands with Krunal Pandya and the two batsmen put on a partnership of over 50 runs for the fourth wicket before Krunal was dismissed for 32 off 23. Earlier, CSK rode on a carnage from Ambati Rayudu to post 218/4. Rayudu remained unbeaten at 72 off 27 that involved 7 sixes and four fours during the course. Apart from him, Faf du Plessis and Moeen Ali also recorded individual half-centuries. CSK are presently sitting at the top of the table while MI are at number four.

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Bihar cricketers beg for salaries, BCCI passes the buck to state board

The cricketers representing Bihar haven’t been paid match fees for the last two domestic seasons and now they are running out of patience. As the players from U-19, U-23 and senior team await their salaries, some of them need the money really bad. “Every time I get a message on my phone I presume money has been deposited,” a desperate Prashant Singh, U-23 Bihar represent was quoted as saying to the Indian Express. “Last year I had to get my elder sister married. I borrowed money, hoping to repay when I get match fees. I lost my father in 2016. I haven’t received the money to date,” Singh continued adding that now he has an elder brother who is Covid-19 positive. “Now my elder brother has tested positive for the coronavirus. I don’t know where I will get money from.” While Prashant from Chhapra in Bihar’s Saran district is one case who need the money more than others as he is the sole breadwinner and the Rs 8 Lakh due to him from the Board of Control for Cricket in India, there are many more awaiting a message of amount getting credited in their banks. The Bihar Cricket Association President Rakesh Kumar Tiwary said that the invoices have been sent to the BCCI, but BCCI on its part said the vouchers sent from BCA had some problems and would require scrutiny. “We had earlier sent invoices to BCCI but they informed us that there was an error in the documentation. All the invoices have been sent again (in March) and payment will be received soon,” Tiwary said. On their part, players including Prashant say, “We have been hearing this for the last one year. ‘Money will be deposited next month’ is what we are told. Our financial situation is dire at the moment.” Although no Ranji Trophy had been held since the 2019-20 season, the Bihar players did play in the Syed Mushtaq Ali and Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021 along with junior and women tournaments. While match fees for cricketers vary for each format, around Rs 40,000 per day is given for the Ranji Trophy, while the match fees for the 50-over game is Rs 25,000, and Rs 12,500 for the T20 match. The Under-23 players are paid Rs 63,000 for a four-day game and Rs 17,500 for a one-day game. At this hour of the pandemic, not only BCA denying their players the much needed financial help, but the richest cricket board in the world is not showing any concern for its domestic players from poor financial states. At the same time, it feeds on the commercial success from an IPL which has become an eyesore for its celebratory mood during the mourning that is the Covid-19 pandemic in India.