Dubai: Dashing wicketkeeper batsman Nicholas Pooran is hoping to make the most of the opportunity during the West Indies series against Pakistan, which kicked-off Friday in Dubai.
Trinidad-born Pooran is considered one of the most exciting up-and-coming players in the Islanders ranks. Only 20 years old, the left-handed batsman who has been piling up runs at will, top-scored with an unbeaten 47 for his team in Wednesday’s warm-up match against the Emirates Cricket Board XI.
Interestingly, it was in Dubai two years ago that he first caught the attention of the cricketing world. Playing in the under-19 World Cup, Pooran produced a fighting 143 off 160 balls to lift the Windies from a woeful 70 for eight to 208 runs in the quarter finals against Australia, which unluckily ended in a five-wicket victory for the Aussies.
“I have fond memories of Dubai,” he recalled. “I am hoping to do something special again here. I am looking forward to the challenge ahead of me,”
Pooran revealed that he had set a goal for himself to get selected for the West Indies senior team by the age of 21. But he surpassed his own expectations when he got the call one year before his target.
“It was a dream come true,” he said “I always thought I’d play for the West Indies at the age of 21. I’m 20 at the moment.
“As a youngster I used to sit at home and watch the guys win two World Cups (2012 and 2016) so this is an amazing moment for me. This is the moment I will always remember and I’m just trying to take this opportunity and make full use of it.”
Pooran has also been scoring heavily in the Caribbean Premier League where he has represented Barbados Tridents from the age of 17. However, he went through a tough time following an accident which happened when he was returning home after training at the National Cricket Centre at Balmain last year. He had to undergo surgery to repair his left ankle and knee which was seriously hurt in the accident.
“I just thank God I’m back playing,” he said, “It’s been difficult as I just started playing this year but fortunately I was picked for this series.
“I’ve trained a lot and put in some hard work day and night, and I know at the end of the day that hard work pays off.”
Explaining how he regained his fitness after the accident Pooran said: “First of all the doctor and his staff did a fantastic job and then they left it to my physio.
“He and his staff did a wonderful job getting me fit and my parents, my sister and my girlfriend stuck with me throughout.
“I appreciate them a lot, and you know it was a tough period for me, but you know who your family is at the end of the day.”
