IPL 2021: Enjoyed my 300th T20 wicket which was of KL Rahul, says Pollard
Sep 28, 2021
Abu Dhabi [UAE], September 29 : Kieron Pollard on Tuesday enjoyed his 300th T20 wicket, which was of KL Rahul as the West Indian all-rounder stated this achievement as 'landmark and very special'.
Notably, Pollard added another feather to his illustrious cap as he became the first player in T20 cricket history to aggregate 10,000 runs and 300 wickets. The West Indian all-rounder achieved this feat while playing for Mumbai Indians in their Indian Premier League (IPL) encounter against Punjab Kings at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium.
Pollard who was bowling the 7th over of the innings, removed his compatriot Chris Gayle for the 299th T20 wicket. Later in the same over he achieved the 300 wickets mark in T20 after he dismissed PBKS captain KL Rahul. Rahul walked back after scoring 21 runs while Gayle returned on one.
Kieron Pollard was adjudged Player of the Match and during the post-match presentation, he said: "Very important to get my 300th wicket. I know what I can do in all the facets of the game. I will be more than happy to do what the team needs of me. You try and watch and target whom you can target and not."
"I enjoyed my 300th wicket which was KL and obviously it's a landmark and very special. For me, it's just trying to practice and it's all about practing and batting according to the situation. I admit that I don't have pace, swing and seam but I can use my brain and get the job done. For us, it's very important to get these 2 points and hopefully, this will be the much-needed spark in the dressing room," he added.
Mumbai Indians (MI) put on a clinical show with both bat and the ball as they defeated Punjab Kings (PBKS) by six wickets. MI chased the target of 136 in 19 overs with the loss of just 4 wickets. Hardik Pandya starred with the bat as all-rounder smashed unbeaten 40* to carry his team over the victory line. Saurabh Tiwary and Kieron Pollard also played important innings of 45 and 15* respectively for the Mumbai Indians (MI). Pollard also scalped two wickets for the defending champions as they restricted PBKS to 135.
Rohit Sharma, the MI skipper said: "We do agree that we didn't play to our potential, but it's a long tournament and we need to stick to our plans and reading the situations is very important and we can take a lot of confidence from that. Important not to lose the guard. The way he (Hardik) understood the situation was very crucial from a team's perspective, it's important for him to spend the time in the middle as he's coming back from a injury."
"He (Pollard) is one of our key players. Crucuial part of MI for so many years. He will be happy with taking the 'Man of the Match' for his bowling performance," he added.
