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Cricket News: Nicholas Pooran steps down from limited-overs captaincy after T20 World Cup debacle | Pooran steps down as West Indies captain

Nicholas Pooran has stepped down from captaincy of West Indies for limited-overs cricket after the team’s first-round exit from the recently-held T20 World Cup in Australia.

The side played 15 ODIs and T20Is each under Pooran’s leadership since he took over the leadership role from Kieron Pollard in May this year. However, they emerged victorious in only four games each in both formats amidst suffering arguably shock losses against Scotland and Ireland in the T20 World Cup last month.

Still ambitious – Nicholas Pooran

“The T20 World Cup is something that must not define us and I will readily get involved in the upcoming reviews. And whilst it will be several months until we reconvene as a squad, I want to give Cricket West Indies (CWI) plenty of time to prepare for the matches against South Africa in March and beyond,” the southpaw was quoted in a report by ESPN Cricinfo.

He added, “This is not me giving up. I remain ambitious and still view the captaincy of West Indies cricket as an honour that is bestowed upon you. There is no doubt I remain fully committed to West Indies cricket and I look forward to providing my services as a senior player in a supportive role.”

The 27-year-old meanwhile added that he gave a great deal of thought to captaincy since the ‘enormous disappointment’ of the T20 World Cup. He acknowledged that he had given the leadership role absolutely everything in the past year. Pooran’s own batting form has taken a hit in recent times, having notched only 94 runs in his last 10 T20I innings.

He explained that he wished for the side to be successful very desperately and admitted that he can infuse optimum value to the setup by consistently turning up with the bat at crucial moments.

CWI director of cricket Jimmy Adams said, “On behalf of CWI I want to thank Nicholas for his time leading our white ball teams. Having spoken with him I know he remains fully committed to West Indies cricket and I am convinced he has a big role to play in our future.”

West Indies’ next limited-overs assignment will be away from home in South Africa in March 2023. The men from the Caribbean will play three One Day Internationals (ODIs) and two T20Is against the Proteas. CWI is likely to name Pooran’s replacements in both the formats going ahead. As of now, Shai Hope and Rovman Powell are the team’s vice-captains in ODIs and T20Is respectively.