England appointed legendary West Indies all-rounder Kieron Pollard as the new consultant for the T20 World Cup 2024. Notably, the Three Lions were extremely ordinary in the recently concluded ODI World Cup and also lost the five-match T20I series 3-2 against the West Indies. Hence, to change the situation and produce better results in the competition, ECB have decided to include Pollard in the mix, as he has a better understanding of the conditions in the Caribbean.
As per The Telegraph, it is a temporary signing as the cricketer is still heavily involved with the game. He features for MI New York, MI Emirates, and several other teams and also is the batting coach of Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League. Hence, Pollard will not be able to join full-time but will be part of the team during the mega tournament, which is slated to begin in early June.
England head coach Rob Key recently blamed himself for not involving a local during their poor run in the ODI World Cup in India. Hence, the 44-year-old didn’t waste time before the T20 World Cup as the ECB is likely to announce the decision before the series against Pakistan in May but due to his commitments with Mumbai Indians, the all-rounder is likely to join the squad for the first time during the mega tournament.
“I hold myself accountable for a lot of it really,” Key said last month. “I’ve set up a coaching team that had no local experience, really. Actually someone who knows these conditions really well says, By the way, it’s hotter than the sun out there; make sure you have a bat. We got so caught up in what was going to happen five or six hours down the line."
The appointment of Pollard will help skipper Jos Buttler, who struggled to understand the conditions in West Indies. The surface can behave slow and low on certain occasions, like it happened in the final T20I, while in some matches, the batters might have a very good day. A lot of England cricketers haven’t played enough cricket in West Indies and hence, Pollard will be a key figure for them.
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