The Trinidadian's composed, match-winning knock under pressure against Royal Challengers Bangalore not only answers his critics but also gives Mumbai Indians more firepower going into Sunday's game against Gujarat Lions.
In cricket, success often depends more on the games that are played between one's ears than the ones that are played with the bat and ball. Before every match, a player conditions his mind as much as he hones his skills. Ask Cheteshwar Pujara.
Not everyone is born a Sachin Tendulkar or a Virender Sehwag, talents that can turn a game on its head from a dire situation. While some players wilt under pressure, some thrive on it to become champions.
The ability of the latter few is so immense that they can sail through even if they aren't in the right frame of mind.
That is precisely what Kieron Pollard did for Mumbai Indians (MI) against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Bengaluru on Friday. With his side in never-seen-before shambles, the beefy Trinidadian came out a winner. And with him, his team did as well.
Even though the M Chinnaswamy Stadium wicket was oddly inconsistent, chasing 143 in an IPL game isn't quite a tall order. MI, however, found themselves in a deep hole when they were brought down to their knees at 7/4 in the first three overs.
In came Pollard, a man who has been in the news lately. Not for the right reasons, though.
Last week, the West Indian had reacted sharply when Sanjay Manjrekar raised questions about his batting capabilities up the order while commentating. The Mumbaikar reckoned that Pollard was reliable only in the last quarter of an innings, and didn't possess the skills to rotate the strike and control the flow of the game.
That Pollard is a fiery character isn't news. Who can forget some of his antics, like when he threw his bat at Australian pacer Mitchell Starc or made a statement by putting a tape on his mouth after he was asked to check his on-field banter.
Clearly, slamming Manjrekar on social media wasn't enough for Pollard. He had to prove his mettle by letting his bat do some talking to go with his tweets as well.
And he did just that. Batting like a beast in the company of Krunal Pandya, Pollard scored a 47-ball 70 to take his team home quite miraculously.
The application was there, the singles were taken, the strike was rotated, and the gears were shifted at just the right time. The challenge was thrown, and Pollard was up for it. He dug in deep and went on to play, perhaps, the best innings of his Indian Premier League career. And in the bargain, he also gave viewers the match of the tournament so far.
The satisfaction on Pollard's face was hard to miss at the end of that game. “Many of my knocks have been under pressure,” he said. “These are the kind of situations when you actually want to come out and do well. When your team is on the back foot.”
After a sedate start to the tournament, the burly fellow has arrived to the party. That should be music to the ears of MI going into Sunday's game against the Gujarat Lions at the Wankhede Stadium. What's more, Pollard firing in the middle-order can also present an opportunity for Rohit Sharma to open the innings.
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