West Indian fast bowling great Michael Holding thinks Kieron Pollard isn't a cricketer. Whispering Death is right. Pollard isn't.
Cricketers don't smash 54 in 18 balls and change a game single-handedly like he did for T & T against New South Wales Blues at Hyderabad in last year's Champions League.
They don't bowl accurate medium pace and swing the ball and pick up valuable wickets. They don't rifle throws in to the keeper's gloves from 80 yards.
They don't throw themselves and dive around athletically despite being 6ft 6 inches tall. They aren't held back late in the order to introduce panic in the opposition camp in a major final.
They aren't expected to help a team score an impossible 55 in 17 balls and still make it seem possible. They don't make fans debate about which spot he should have been sent in.
Pollard is not a cricketer. He's just a special one. Tall, strapping and with an ability to hit the ball a distance, not too many people knew about him despite the West Indian KP having played in a few ODIs.
In fact, he was even rejected by the franchises despite 'commanding' a base price of just $60,000 during the 2009 auctions for IPL 2. You see, he was an unknown commodity then. His Diwali night knock in the CLT20 changed all that.
Agents came knocking on his door, IPL franchises employed a strong PR personnel to ensure that Pollard is in their good books. It was a given that he would be a prize catch come the player auctions for IPL 3.
Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers and Kolkata Knight Riders doled out the moolah and entered a bidding war. Mumbai Indians won the bid in a tie-breaker. While officially, Pollard was bought for $750,000 by MI, reports say Nita Ambani paid more than $2.5 million to procure his services. If anyone understands value for money, the business house that owns MI does.
That there was a massive buzz surrounding Pollard in a team that featured the great Sachin Tendulkar is a fascinating story in itself.
Overnight, life had changed for the Trinidadian. Crowds at the CCI and DY Patil, who tirelessly chant S-A-C-H-I-N, S-A-C-H-I-N, now chanted P-O-L-L-A-R-D, P-O-L-L-A-R-D, every time he strode to the wicket.
Pollard's success wouldn't have gone unnoticed. Other cricketers would be keen to emulate him. If they can utilise the platform that the Champions League provides in South Africa, like he did last year, one can see more stars explode in the cricketing galaxy.
Cricketers don't smash 54 in 18 balls and change a game single-handedly like he did for T & T against New South Wales Blues at Hyderabad in last year's Champions League.
They don't bowl accurate medium pace and swing the ball and pick up valuable wickets. They don't rifle throws in to the keeper's gloves from 80 yards.
They don't throw themselves and dive around athletically despite being 6ft 6 inches tall. They aren't held back late in the order to introduce panic in the opposition camp in a major final.
They aren't expected to help a team score an impossible 55 in 17 balls and still make it seem possible. They don't make fans debate about which spot he should have been sent in.
Pollard is not a cricketer. He's just a special one. Tall, strapping and with an ability to hit the ball a distance, not too many people knew about him despite the West Indian KP having played in a few ODIs.
In fact, he was even rejected by the franchises despite 'commanding' a base price of just $60,000 during the 2009 auctions for IPL 2. You see, he was an unknown commodity then. His Diwali night knock in the CLT20 changed all that.
Agents came knocking on his door, IPL franchises employed a strong PR personnel to ensure that Pollard is in their good books. It was a given that he would be a prize catch come the player auctions for IPL 3.
Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers and Kolkata Knight Riders doled out the moolah and entered a bidding war. Mumbai Indians won the bid in a tie-breaker. While officially, Pollard was bought for $750,000 by MI, reports say Nita Ambani paid more than $2.5 million to procure his services. If anyone understands value for money, the business house that owns MI does.
That there was a massive buzz surrounding Pollard in a team that featured the great Sachin Tendulkar is a fascinating story in itself.
Overnight, life had changed for the Trinidadian. Crowds at the CCI and DY Patil, who tirelessly chant S-A-C-H-I-N, S-A-C-H-I-N, now chanted P-O-L-L-A-R-D, P-O-L-L-A-R-D, every time he strode to the wicket.
Pollard's success wouldn't have gone unnoticed. Other cricketers would be keen to emulate him. If they can utilise the platform that the Champions League provides in South Africa, like he did last year, one can see more stars explode in the cricketing galaxy.
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