"We know deep down how much it has hurt" - MI's Kieron Pollard reflects on poor IPL 2022 campaign
Mumbai Indians (MI) all-rounder Kieron Pollard shared a heartfelt post on Wednesday after a disappointing campaign in IPL 2022.
The five-time IPL champions crashed out of the 15th edition of the cash-rich league, finishing last in the points table. Mumbai lost their first eight games before winning four of their remaining six matches.
Pollard, too, had an underwhelming season and was later left out of the playing XI.
Sharing a moving post on Instagram, the West Indian all-rounder stated that the 2022 season was a learning curve for all the stakeholders of the Mumbai Indians franchise.
Kieron Pollard wrote:
"As I walk and look back at a disappointing season for us as a team and myself as an individual , we know deep down how much it has hurt but it didn’t derail the spirit , determination and hard work that was put in by every single person. We definitely learnt a lot from this 2022 season."
He further added:
"Does that define us as a team or individuals hell no . We march on with our heads still held high knowing we have life and opportunity to change things around . @mumbaiindians and fans we move on say bye 2022 season."
The 35-year-old all-rounder also congratulated Hardik Pandya and his team for winning the prestigious title. Pollard stated:
"Congrats @hardikpandya93 and @gujarat_titans well done well played."
The Gujarat Titans (GT) thrashed the Rajasthan Royals (RR) by seven wickets on May 29 at the Narendra Modi Stadium to win IPL 2022 in their maiden appearance.
Hardik led the team from the front in the summit clash, returning with figures of 3/17 with the ball. He also played a crucial knock of 34 runs to help the team chase down 131 runs.
Kieron Pollard's records in IPL 2022
The Trinidadian has been a consistent performer for the Mumbai Indians ever since he joined the franchise in 2010. He was retained ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction earlier this year for a whopping amount of ₹6 crore.
However, Pollard failed to live up to the billing. The veteran all-rounder managed to score only 144 runs in 11 outings at an average of 14.40 and a strike rate of just over 107. He was also not consistent with the ball and picked up only four wickets in the 14 overs he bowled.
His place in the playing XI was questioned by many experts before the management decided to bench him to try out young players for next season.
Former Mumbai Indians and India cricketer, Parthiv Patel has raised questions over Kieron Pollard’s lack of form. https://t.co/tetlVN0F6G
However, Kieron Pollard is an IPL legend, having scored 3412 runs in 189 games. He has won innumerable games for the Mumbai franchise and has been part of all five of their title-winning campaigns.