CAVE HILL, Barbados – Kieron Pollard said he relished the situation that confronted when he went to the crease in a West Indies warm-up match on Wednesday at the 3Ws Oval.
Pollard warmed up a blistering 155 from 121 balls. Photo: windiescricket.com
Pollard warmed up for higher intensity battles against Australia in the Digicel Series, when he struck 10 fours and 10 sixes in a blistering assault, scoring 155 from 121 balls in the 50 overs-a-side match, which formed part of the training camp for the West Indies team at the Sagicor High Performance Centre.
All-rounder Pollard went to the crease with Denesh Ramdin’s side in trouble on 25-5 and took the opportunity to get his mind firmly fixed on the five Digicel One-Day Internationals, starting next Friday in St. Vincent.
He added 196 for the sixth wicket with Ramdin, who made 59 from 70 balls, giving their side the platform for a hefty 313-8 from their 50 overs. Darren Sammy’s team replied with 283 off 50 overs.
The 24-year-old Pollard said his experience playing around the world have helped him to understand his game much better and he was looking to make an impact against the Aussies.
“I have been playing a lot of T20 cricket, but when you practise, you do not practise T20. When you practise, you work on your technique and there are a number of things I have been working on,” he said.
“I have confronted a number of different conditions and a number of different scenarios. What I have been trying to do is learn from each situation and try to put it to use in my game and, hopefully, it would make me a better player at this time.”
Pollard admitted that he welcomed the opportunity to bat early in the practice game, since it helped him to deal with a situation in which he had found himself in the past.
“It was the kind of position in which I have found myself on a number of occasions in the past and I wanted to handle the situation differently,” he said.
“I have been working on a number of things in my game. The team was in trouble, and I went out there and tried to stick it out a bit, hang around a bit, and see how it unfolded from there.”
Pollard has played 51 ODIs for West Indies since his debut five years ago and made his maiden ODI hundred last December against India in Chennai.
He said he had no specific goals for the Australian series, but hoped he could contribute to the overall success of the West Indies team.
“I am happy to play whatever role the team needs from me,” he said. “I just want to be able to adapt to different situations and different circumstances.
“Australia are a very competitive team, so they will be looking to come at us hard. But we just have to take on board all of the preparation that has been put in place for us and it into the series and try to do our best.”
West Indies play a second 50 overs-a-side practice match on Saturday at the 3Ws Oval before leaving for St. Vincent on Monday, where they will contest the first three Digicel ODIs on March 16, 18 and 20 at the Arnos Vale Cricket Ground.