"Lost to West Indies, so they called a West Indian" - Fans react as England rope in Kieron Pollard for coaching role ahead of T20 World Cup 2024
Former West Indies white-ball captain Kieron Pollard will join England's coaching unit for their 2024 T20 World Cup campaign. The official announcement of the ace all-rounder's appointment was made on Sunday, December 24.
Pollard will serve as an assistant coach for the English team at next year's showpiece event. The team enjoyed a glorious run at the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia, emerging as champions with a five-wicket win over Pakistan in the final.
England's team management will look to make the most of Pollard's presence, considering that the tournament is going to be played in the West Indies and the United States of America.
Several fans took to social media to react to the appointment. Here are some of the top reactions:
It is worth mentioning that Kieron Pollard is also the batting coach of the Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Furthermore, he still participates in several T20 leagues globally as a player and was recently picked by Karachi Kings in the platinum category at the Pakistan Super League (PSL) draft.
England struggled to get going in their recently-concluded white-ball series against the West Indies
England toured the West Indies for a three-match ODI series and a five-match T20I series earlier this month. However, Jos Buttler and Co. failed to get the upper hand over the hosts in both formats.
The West Indies won the ODI series 2-1. England put up a fight after losing the first two matches of the T20I series. While they managed to level the series 2-2 with successive victories, they ultimately suffered a six-wicket defeat in the decisive encounter.
The English side have been fairly inconsistent with their performances in white-ball cricket this year. They failed to defend their 50-over World Cup trophy, managing just three wins from 10 matches at the ICC event. They finished seventh in the points table and were slammed by many for their dismal performance.