Nicholas Pooran names the toughest Indian bowler he has ever faced [Exclusive]

Former West Indies cricketer Nicholas Pooran shared his experiences with players like Kuldeep Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Speaking to CricTracker, the explosive left-handed batsman, who retired from international cricket at the age of 29, also revealed the three Indian batsmen whose batting style he cherished the most.

Pooran played a total of 167 internationals for the West Indies during an international career that spanned eight years. He has recorded runs from 1983 in 61 ODIs at an average of 39.66 and 2275 runs in 101 T20Is at a strike rate of 136.39. Pooran has also plied his trade for several franchise teams across the world; Lucknow Super Giants, Trinbago Knight Riders and Rangpur Riders to name a few. With his explosive power-hitting and wicketkeeping skills, Pooran can be considered a T20 specialist.

Fragments:

You have faced some of the best Indian bowlers in the IPL. Who is the strongest Indian bowler you have met so far?

I mean, the hardest part, there’s quite a few. The one who takes me out a few times is definitely Kuldeep. And he knows it too. Bumrah got me a few times too. But hopefully I’ll keep figuring out a way, and next year it will be different.

Among the current Indian batsmen, whose batting style do you admire the most and why?

There are quite a few guys that I look at and quite like. I like Shubman Gill. He’s really nice. I like that Rishabh Pant’s mentality is ‘my way or no way’; he gets the job done. Even young Abhishek [Sharma]his fearlessness and his ability to hit sixes on the first ball is wonderful to see. I like those three guys.

You have shared the dressing room with players like KL Rahul and Shubman Gill. What is unique about their work ethic or mentality?

Not just them, but all the world-class players, all the best players in the world, they all have a routine. They are also all very consistent. And they want to be the best in the world. They put the work in. The reason these guys are successful is because they put the work in. I’m not surprised. And that’s something I had to take from their book. I had to take that page out of their book and implement it into my game. And I just try to be disciplined and consistent, which is the most important thing, both on and off the field. And I think that’s the life of a professional athlete, consistency and professionalism.

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