Nicholas Pooran knows a thing or two about winning championships. It was his epic 137* that saw MI New York lift the Cognizant MLC title in 2023. He’s back in familiar territory, and he’s on a mission to bring home another piece of silverware. Excerpts from his pre-match press conference.. 

On MI New York making it to the final

It’s definitely been an interesting journey. Qualifying with three wins has been a challenge but T20 cricket is all about peaking at the right time. For a group, we are very optimistic of our chances. We knew if we qualified, it was a different tournament for us. We are just gathering momentum at the right time. 

On the team never giving up hope 

It’s just something about the franchise. We expect to win every competition and game. It’s a tough place to be in. There is a lot of pressure. But in the dressing room that belief matters. When everyone is going through with the right energy, anything is possible. Like we saw in the first year, we had a similar journey in the MLC. A lot of players don’t have that experience but thankfully we have a lot of guys in the dressing room who have knowledge as well. We share that energy. Obviously in the big moments, the senior players rise to the occasion as well. It is most important for any team. 

On playing cricket in the USA 

For me it’s just the environment, it is refreshing. My family is out here as well. It is a nice vacation for them as well. They support me and have a good time. Because cricket is happening here in the US, it is closer to the Caribbean. They try to enjoy the sport. The tournament went to Miami as well this year and with the support it felt like home. It is closer to home for me, so loving the opportunity. 

The bond he shares with Kieron Pollard

Yeah he’s been my mentor. We share conversations everyday about cricket on how to get better. But the journey this year was one of the toughest challenges we had. We lost some players early in the tournament and some players didn’t turn up. It’s been difficult. It’s one that came down to doing your job as a batsman first and then figuring out on how to win games. It was a challenge to get everyone playing together. It’s a tough experience. You have to kind of manage all these emotions, the highs and lows, the expectations of the local players as well. One thing we continue speaking about is, ‘let’s continue to do our job’. This is for everyone, from the coaching staffs to the players. When we look back that is what we did. The coach managed that really well. It’s been challenging. It’s not a nice place to be in when you are losing games. He did a really nice job in managing everyone. 

Where the campaign turned around for MINY

The moment for us was Trent Boult’s innings. Credit must be given to him, he gave us a chance in this tournament. 

On the local USA players stepping up

The scouts have done exceptionally well in identifying talent. Monank has been there since the beginning. In the first two years, he didn’t get the returns he wanted but this year, he has been our standout performer throughout the tournament. His leadership as well. He is the captain of the USA team. He speaks the language of the locals. You can lean on him to get through to the other guys. As overseas players, our responsibility is to share our knowledge and experience. We have some banter at the back of the bus with the local players when they messed up, just to make a joke about it. The coach always says, ‘people in China don’t care whether e win or lose’. We are going to wake up tomorrow and see another day and play another game of cricket. It’s okay to make mistakes, you just don’t want to make it often. It’s our job to have these players grow as well. It’s nice to see the local players getting the opportunity and having an impact as well. It is only going to help USA cricket. You saw in the World Cup as well when they pull off some upsets. Really good to see the franchise giving these players the responsibility and the opportunity. 

On Rushil Ugarkar coming to the party

Rushil has been with us for a few years and it is really nice to see how he has grown. He didn’t start off in the tournament but it is nice to see that you can call someone on the bench. Big kudos to him. He is definitely going in the right direction, not just for us but for himself and for USA cricket. If he pays attention to detail, he’ll become better. He wants to bowl in the tough situations. We have to support him and try to get him better. 

On what he sees as personal success in this tournament 

For me it’s not about being a captain, it’s about being a leader. I love seeing other people succeed. I want to play a role, whether that is a supporting role or sharing some advice, I want to see people doing well. It is important for me to be a good human being as well. These guys come from different backgrounds. If I can help in any way I can, I would love to. It is really nice to see these guys take in some advice. I try my best, be the best version of myself. If it means putting a smile on someone’s face, I do so.