NZ vs WI | Windies are ‘really bad’ when they’re bad, loathes Kieron Pollard

11/29/2020

West Indies skipper Kieron Pollard, on the back of his side’s series loss against the Kiwis, has rued the team’s tendency to implode uncontrollably and has admitted that what unfolded on Sunday was an aberration. After letting the Kiwis post 238, 166 was all WI could manage en route a series defeat.

Following a hot and cold, undisciplined performance in the first T20I at Bay Oval, the Windies were once again punished without mercy by a clinical New Zealand side in the 2nd T20I on Sunday. After being inserted into bat by the visitors on a batting paradise, the Kiwis piled on a mammoth 238, courtesy a century from Glenn Phillips and a fifty from Devon Conway, also aided by some erratic bowling by the Windies, who churned out 13 extras.

In response, the Windies never got their chase up and running and were outplayed thoroughly by the Kiwis, who choked the visitors to just 166 to seal the series. In the aftermath of the defeat, skipper Kieron Pollard fumed at the indiscipline showed by his side and loathed that the Windies have the tendency to be ‘really bad’ when things go wrong.

“100 percent went in the opposite direction of what we wanted to plan and execute. When we're bad, we go really bad. We had them in their first 10 overs but between 10-15 overs, we let things slip. The fielding was not upto the mark and I think it's a mindset issue than a technical thing,” Pollard said in the post-match.

“Toss is 50-50 but we opted to bowl to see if the fast/swing bowlers would get any movement. That didn't work. Getting them down to 190-200 would have been okay but as I said, they got away from us from overs 10-15.”

The Windies, however, in all fairness, lost the game in the first 20 overs and that was thanks to Glenn Phillips, who smacked the fastest T20I century by a New Zealander. In his 51-ball stay at the middle, the right-hander struck 8 humongous sixes and powered his way to 108 to bully a dejected Windies unit. Reflecting on his knock, the 23-year-old claimed that adaptability was key, and thanked Devon Conway for the support he provided. Together, Phillips and Conway strung together an indomitable 184-run stand.

“Nice to be able to be up there with him (Munro) on the leaderboard. Batting with Dev (Conway) was incredible. (On him doing well against WI and in CPL) You always go with confidence against guys you have done well against. New ground and I tried to adapt as much as I could. All the coaches and players that I grew up with are a major part of who I am today,” Phillips said.

The third and final T20I of the series will be played, yet again, at the Bay Oval on Monday.