Nicholas Pooran feels West Indies is a formidable side

Cricket, according to West Indies captain Nicholas Pooran, is primarily a team sport, and success isn’t greatly influenced by the absence of high-profile players. West Indies failed to advance past the Super 12s in 2021 despite having players like Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo, and Andre Russell on the Caribbean team. This time around, the team does not have big players.

Pooran used Australia as an example, noting that when Aaron Finch’s team won the T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates in 2021, they didn’t have many well-known players. West Indies is placed in the Group B of the First-Round games alongside Ireland, Scotland, and Zimbabwe. They’ll advance to the Super 12 only if they end at either the first or second place in the points table of their group.

“Australia won last year and they didn’t have too many big names, but they had a team and that was enough for them to win the World Cup. We don’t have big names but have a formidable team. That’s more important. Once the guys play together, play for each other, everything will be fine,” Pooran was quoted as saying in a press conference.

“There should be a balance between experienced and younger players. We won two World Cups with big names, but we failed to qualify with big names last time. It’s not about an individual player, but team performance,” he added.

I am personally feeling great: Pooran

Pooran scored four runs in two games during the T20I series against Australia, and as a result, could not stand out of the remainder of the group. The southpaw, however, isn’t overly concerned with his own form. West Indies, as a team, haven’t had success in their recent outings and the players would be looking to turn the tables around.

“I am personally feeling great. I didn’t perform in the first two games against Australia, but that’s fine. I haven’t batted much, I have been playing really well and feeling good as a batter. I am striking the ball pretty well as well. The guys are confident, we have been in Australia for over two weeks now. A lot of these guys haven’t played in Australia. This will be the first time, the guys are confident, the preparations have been good,” he further stated.