Pollard slams WICB for questioning his commitment

Allrounder Kieron Pollard has challenged the West Indies selectors’ rationale for dropping him for the tri-series in Zimbabwe in November. Pollard said he was told that he had not been “committed to batting” during the recent limited-overs games against Pakistan in UAE.

Calling the decision “funny”, Pollard said he would not “campaign or do anything to convince them” to select him and instead focus on looking after himself in the future.

What confused Pollard about his axing for the Zimbabwe tri-series was that, according to him, the West Indies chairman of selectors Courtney Browne had agreed during a conversation in the UAE that his experience would be good in a young squad.

“When chairman of selectors Courtney Browne notified me via email of my axing, I reminded him of why my exclusion was funny because during the Twenty20 and one-day series, the two of us had a long conversation, speaking about wanting to have guys such as myself around going forward in West Indies cricket,” Pollard told ESPNcricinfo.

Pollard said he sought clarification from Browne on why he had been dropped. “He said I wasn’t ‘committed to batting’ during the tour, which I pressed him to clarify further because it was a broad statement. I asked specifically if this commitment he interpreted I wasn’t giving also related to my bowling, fielding and advice to captain Jason Holder. And he said no, and stressed it was just batting and in his view – I was not trying.”

Pollard was angry his commitment had been questioned. “A lot people tend to say Pollard and many of us are mercenaries and have given nothing to West Indies cricket. While it’s clear I don’t have the stats or the figures of a Brian Lara, nobody, as some were trying to suggest, can ever question my commitment or integrity while playing. Why would …

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