At times,you just have to whack the ball

On the face of it,Kieron Pollard may seem like one of the many genial giants of West Indian cricket. Not only is the characteristic Caribbean...

On the face of it,Kieron Pollard may seem like one of the many genial giants of West Indian cricket. Not only is the characteristic Caribbean flavour evident in everything he does off the field,Pollard exudes the same nonchalance in the centre as well whether it is taking a catch or clearing the stands with seemingly consummate ease. But the 22-year-old Trinidadian has almost single-handedly brought the Champions League bereft of an IPL team back to life by terrorising the bowlers at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad over the last one week.

Ive always tried to hit as hard as I can. During practice,the coach complains that I keep losing the balls, says Pollard,who was drafted into the West Indian squad for the 2007 World Cup as a 19-year-old. But it depends on the situation you are walking into. There are times when you have to play within yourself and there are times when you just have to whack it, says the right-hander who has hit the highest number of sixes in the competition so far.

He might have a 20 v 20 as part of his hairstyle,but Pollard,who has already played 15 ODIs and 10 international T20s,insists he is capable of adapting his game to all three formats. One of the greatest openers in the world,Virender Sehwag,also plays the same way regardless of the format he is playing in. I believe in playing my natural game too, he explains.

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Pollard,though,does admit he was fast-tracked into the national team and initially found the level of cricket a tad too difficult. I was picked at the last minute,and I just went out there and played my natural game. I got only one innings,slogged and got out. But I have understood my place in the side now, he says.

But it has been as a bowler that Pollard has experienced success in international cricket,having picked up 12 wickets at an average of 28 in his ODI career so far. And he believes he could very well end up making an impact with the ball here too. We have five or six all-rounders in the squad,and the skipper can bring on any one of us to bowl. My chance will certainly come, says Pollard.