When you watch the Carribean players walking with a swagger around them, you know that they are special. From the great Sir Vivian Richards and Brian Lara to the evergreen Chris Gayle and Kieron Pollard, the men from the West Indies have charisma and skills which are unparalleled.
T20 is perhaps more about instincts than pre-meditation at times. It is more about brute force than finesse at times. When you think of these qualities, you are instantly reminded of the Windies players. No wonder, they are utterly successful in the shortest form of the game.
Although it’s the Indian Premier League, it’s the Carribean players who are ruling the roost in the blockbuster T20 league. As soon as it was declared that the West Indies Cricket Board has allowed its players to be available for the entire IPL, franchises were always ready to pay big bucks for these devastating players. A lot of players like Oshane Thomas, Shimron Hetmyer, Sherfane Rutherford etc did become billionaires overnight but its still the old and proven match-winners who are lighting up the biggest T20 league in the World. When these players shift to T20 cricket, they become fearsome and furious. They are indeed the kings of this form of the game.
There is a famous saying, “it’s not over until it’s over.” Not many but Andre Russel, the Jamaican powerhouse firmly believes in this saying. No team before in the history of 11 years of IPL chased down 53 runs in the last 3 overs to win a game but Russel has done this twice in 3 innings. He knows how to pull out a victory from the jaws of defeat. The kind of power he has would have made him a good wrestler and but he decided to use it while playing cricket. Just imagine the plight of the white Kookaburra when it touches Andre’s colossal weapon. His scores read 49 not out, 48, 62, 48 not out and 50 not out. He is striking at 212 and scoring a boundary almost every 3rd ball of his innings on an average. No one currently can hit the ball out of the park from the word ‘go’ with such sheer consistency. If it were not for his heroics with the bat, Kolkata would not be sitting pretty in the top 4.
Another man from Jamaica who is giving nightmares to the bowlers is the most successful T20 batsman as of now, Chris Gayle. No one else lingers anywhere close to the records set by the Universe Boss. It’s astonishing that he is 39 and still undeterred. Questions have been asked about lukewarm running between the wickets but he makes up for that by helping the ball to go on a journey around the stadium. He has been tied down a little bit by fast bowlers who employ the short ball ploy against him but he has been up to the task. He takes his time initially to grasp the pace of the pitch and then goes absolutely berserk. He is still making the Royal Challengers Bangalore regret the decision to let him go. With Kings XI Punjab relying so heavily on their openers, Gayle is their key to success. Till now he has scored 223 runs at a strike-rate of 158.5
There are certain players who may not be epitomes of consistency but they are the players who win you games from impossible situations. One of those players is Kieron Pollard. He does not score regularly but bails his team out of trouble when the team needs him the most. He won a lost battle against the Kings XI Punjab. He was given the captainship owing to Rohit Sharma’s injury. So, he decided to promote himself to number 4 and take it upon himself. No team before in the history of IPL chased down 133 runs successfully in the last 10 overs of the match. He has answered all the questions and has told the world why the Mumbai Indians back him so much. This win could not have been scripted any better and by no one else but Pollard.
Talking of match-winners, this young man has just learnt how to pull off heart-throbbing wins from nowhere. The under-19 star Alzarri Joseph was roped in as a replacement for the injured Adam Milne and he had the best debut that one can ever dream of. Getting 6/12 on debut which are the best figures in the history of the IPL is something exemplary. He played ahead of Malinga in the next game against Punjab and he did it with the bat this time. He scored just 15 runs but you don’t always become a hero by scoring hundreds. He is definitely one for the future.
Then there are players like Sunil Narine and Dwayne Bravo who are having an average season compared to their standards but they are still playing a key role for their sides. Narine who is the 8th highest wicket taker in the IPL history has just 3 wickets against his name this season while Bravo has an economy of shade under 10 this season so far. But T20 is about small margins and anyone can have a bad day. But they are quality players too. Chennai Super Kings will be hoping that Bravo recovers soon from his hamstring injury while KKR will want Narine to throw some venom along with his off-spinners.
No doubt, West Indians are the biggest match-winners in T20 cricket and as usual, are making quite an impact in the IPL. Those who have not performed up to the expectations will be hungry to do so soon enough.
