Kieron Pollard is now the highest run scorer in T20 cricket after passing his former West Indies teammate Chris Gayle while competing in Major League Cricket (MLC) on Saturday.
The 39-year-old scored an unbeaten, even century for MI New York in a losing cause against the Washington Freedom at Grand Prairie Stadium.
Pollard reached the milestone in spectacular fashion by launching Asif Mehmood over long-off for six to go from 79 to 85 and carry his tally to 14,567 runs, overtaking Gayle’s 12-year record of 14, 562 runs in the process.
His unbeaten century – his second in T20s – carried him to 14, 582 runs in his 736th match at a strike rate of 151.12.
Only 22 of Pollard’s 653 T20 innings have come from higher than No. 4, while 286 innings have come while batting at 6 and 7 combined.
Speaking on his achievement, Pollard said he was honoured to have broken the record as a middle-order batsman.
He said surpassing Gayle, widely known as the ‘Universe Boss’, was a special feeling.
“Surpassing Chris Gayle, someone we looked up to in the West Indies over a period of time, is special. He has done great things in all formats of cricket, so again, sorry Universe Boss, but we are both at the top there.
“Having said that, batting at No. 6 or 7 is very difficult. Somebody needs to do the dirty work, though, and while everyone rushes to bat at the top of the order, a cricket match involves 11 people, and everyone has a role to play,” Pollard said.
“I guess my role over time was to finish matches, and I embraced that. Once you embrace the challenge and practice for it, good things come.”
Pollard said while milestones had been far from his mind when he started, there was satisfaction in seeing how T20 had changed the sport after the likes of himself, Gayle and Dwayne Bravo faced “ridicule” for opting to prioritise the format.
“I’d be lying if I said that [scoring this number of runs was on my mind]. But what I’m proud of, individually and with all those other guys like Chris, is that we took a leap of faith and we got ridiculed a lot for it,” Pollard said.
“Now you live to see guys at a young age even retiring from international cricket to play franchise cricket because again cricket is not just a sport anymore; it’s a business.
“One thing I’ve understood in life about human beings is that when you do something different, change is something we’re not really accustomed to. I’m happy that I’ve lived the day to see it, and I hope everyone who criticised us over the years can sit back and say, ‘Cheers’. We don’t need a sorry. Respect each and every format of the game, but understand that just like technology, everything is changing,” he added. (CMC)
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