Kieron Pollard on Sunil Narine making West Indies T20 World Cup squad: Let's deal with 15 guys we have here
Kieron Pollard indicated that Sunil Narine won't make the cut for the West Indies' T20 World Cup squad despite the stellar performances he has put in for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the UAE leg of the IPL.
In Short
- Narine produced one of his finest all-round performances to help KKR beat RCB
- He was not selected because of not meeting the West Indies' minimum fitness criteria
- Narine has not played international cricket since August 2019
Sunil Narine may not make the cut for the West Indies' T20 World Cup squad despite the upturn in form the spinner has recently experienced in the Indian Premier League (IPL), said captain Kieron Pollard.
West Indies lead selector Roger Harper had explained earlier that Narine, who has not played international cricket since August 2019, did not meet the board's minimum fitness criteria.
"That has been explained," Pollard said from the team's training base in Dubai. Pollard joined the squad after his IPL campaign with the Mumbai Indians came to an end.
"If I add my two cents or my words on how his non-inclusion came about, then it could be spun - just like how he's bowling on these Sharjah wickets - in all different directions. Let's deal with the fifteen guys that we have here at this moment in time, which is more important, and see if we can rally around these guys and see if we can defend our title.
"I have no comments on that. Enough has been said on that. I think persons have explained the reason of his non-inclusion at this point in time. For me personally, I know Sunil Narine as a friend first, before an international cricketer. We grew up playing cricket together. He is a world-class cricketer."
"Before I make any assumptions as to what he can or he can't do, we need to do our assessment first as a team," Pollard said.
West Indies are fretting over the fitness of senior all-rounder Andre Russell, who hasn't played for KKR since September 26 due to injury.
"We haven't had the opportunity to see him. We've gotten reports as to what he has done. I wouldn't want to get into trying to say what he can or can't do at this point in time.
"He's a critical person for our team and we'd love for him to be 100 per cent, but we have to deal with what's in front of us. Let's see what happens over the next couple of days. KKR have another game tomorrow and then, if they get through to the final, on Friday. When we see him as a management staff, we'll be able to assess and ascertain what he can or can't do, but we're looking forward to having a fit Andre Russell if possible," said Pollard.