Been there, done that. But we just cannot have enough of him. Kieron Pollard has made a habit of winning these close games for over 16 years now in the Blue and Gold. Tonight was something very similar, against the Texas Super Kings, where his 22-ball unbeaten knock of 47 pulled off a chase from an asking rate of around 12, taking MI New York storming into the Cognizant MLC Final. He was the post-match press conference sharing his views. Excerpts.. 

On what worked for the team despite the early losses this season

Belief. In all honesty, we haven’t played good cricket. We shouldn’t have been here but we are here. Once you have an opportunity, you have to grasp it with both hands. The belief in the dressing room was until we couldn’t qualify mathematically, we were going to give it a 100 percent. That has been the mantra of this MI franchise, not just here but around the world as was started from the mother franchise in India. It was something that was ingrained in us. Once you get the opportunity to put on that Blue and Gold, you get that never-say-die attitude. 

Where the turnaround happened

We went to Miami and forgot about cricket. I think that was the best thing for us. We just turned up and saw what was in front of us. Getting to Miami was refreshing for us. Guys went, shopped, retail therapy (laughs). But that’s something that helped us to be very honest. 

On Rushil and Tristan stepping up

It is just fantastic. We are happy for them as individuals. MI is a big franchise and we continue to yearn a lot of young talent in all franchises. Tristan (Luus) was selected last or second last in the SA20 and didn’t play a game. But he got an opportunity here because Rashid wasn’t here. He came out and showed what he is made of. Now people will take a look at him. Rushil (Ugarkar) was there last year and played a couple of games at the back end. He has grown tremendously. He came to India during the IPL, he was bowling there and understanding what was needed. Long may that continue for him. As an experienced player in the dressing room, it is on us to give him that confidence to go out and just express yourself. 

On Monank Patel’s stellar season 

Very good character. There is a reason why he is the captain of the USA. When we selected him we selected him as the captain of the USA. It didn’t happen the way he’d have liked (in the first two seasons) but this year he has come with a different sort of mentality, understanding and knowing that he is made for this. The consistency he has shown through the process where he scores those runs gives us that safe feeling. I am sure people would have questioned his strike rate at the start of his innings, but the end result when he finishes, he strikes at 150. It’s great to see him doing well. Hopefully the other USA players and young players qualified to play for the USA take a page from his book and understand what is needed at this level to succeed. 

Plans for the Final 

Score one run more than them, or limit them to one run less than us. 

On negating Akeal Hosein’s bowling plans

When we played them in the last game, Nicholas Pooran opened the batting. That was because of him. We have grown up with Akeal. Personally sent Akeal to England as a youngster. Pooran keeps wickets to him in club cricket, international cricket. Tactically we knew what was needed. It didn’t work in that game and we faced a lot of flak for it. But knowing that he had one more over with Nicholas Pooran being out there, we knew he wasn’t going to bowl. That’s us winning a battle against TSK. They could have taken a chance and it could have swung in our favor or their favor. That’s the game of chess that you play when you play T20 cricket. You negate those threats. He has done fantastically well in this year of the MLC from a bowling perspective and we saw what he can do with the bat as well. 

How he’d like to see cricket grow in the USA 

Sports in America is big. All the sports they play from NFL to Basketball to MLS. To see cricket come to America, happy to be part and parcel of it. If we continue to market cricket in America in different states, it is going to big. It gives you everything, you want to come out there and perform for the people. Let’s continue to market it and grow this league for the future. 

On the three grounds he’s played at so far in the MLC

This stadium is so close. Fans are interactive. That’s something I have been impressed with. In Lauderhill, it is a fantastic stadium. We just need to get the weather right in terms of when we play. The one that struck me the most was in Oakland. It was a baseball stadium but a bit small. You still want to achieve a balance between bat and ball. We just need to build on that and get stadiums where fans can interact with players. 

On what he looks for in new players 

For me personally, I look at the individual himself. Being yourself is the first thing I look at. Talent comes afterwards. Understanding the game of cricket, the way you carry yourself, the way you go about in different scenarios. You can say this guy is talented, but when the going gets tough he gets out, or he is not ready to bowl the tough overs. I look for that sort of work ethic. We can work on everything else. I’m not someone who likes to see someone impress. Be natural, let your talent take care of itself, and you can be as world class as some of the players coming into this franchise.