BRYAN DAVIS
THE TRINBAGO Knight Riders (TKR) won the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) thrice, and once in their previous incarnation as Red Steel. The four times combined constitutes the most successful winners’ row appearances in the competition after ten tournaments.
They plunged to last in the contest for the first time in 2022.
The captain, Kieron Pollard, has to do some analysis in order to understand what caused the wheels to come off.
He cannot leave it to the coach, Abhishek Nayar, who does not seem to have fitted in with his team. He made a few statements that I believe reveal he did not have sufficient time to adjust to the players and organise them into a unit that could be motivated. Many coaches seem to make the same mistake. They have the big names and expect the player to take it from there. To mould the team, one has to get to know each individual and understand what makes them tick.
A cricketer like Pollard has been through it all and understands what is required of him. However, he loses sight of the needs of individuals who do not have his experience, fame or ability, and must be coached in how to improve performance through flexibility and practice.
[caption id="attachment_978516" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Trinbago Knight Riders pacer Andre Russell (left) in action during the Hero Caribbean Premier League match against the Guyana Amazon Warriors at the Queen's Park Oval, St Clair on September 14. - Photo by Ayanna Kinsale[/caption]
Therefore, while he may be leaving the proper instruction up to the coach, it's a mistake to believe the player at this level of cricket would automatically know the right approach for every situation; it is not like that at all.
Pollard’s biggest recent loss was Dwayne Bravo, who departed in order to lead the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in 2021. And he had been with the TKR since they were Red Steel.
At the formation of TKR, the administrators of that team, in order to strengthen their side, brought in Pollard and Narine from other franchises in the IPL so that together there would be strong representation from TT.
[caption id="attachment_978512" align="alignnone" width="664"] Andre Russell (right) and Nicholas Pooran -[/caption]
The atmosphere of a winning team is unique and one must be careful when making adjustments. Nonetheless, the hierarchy, including the coach and captain, thought it necessary to bring in two more top-flight players to strengthen their team, Nicholas Pooran and Andre Russell.
The entire team seemed beaten from early. At no time were they upbeat. There was no existing spirit.
But here is where overconfidence exists. Nayar proclaimed: “In terms of what we have this season, we’ve got a stronger unit. Nicholas Pooran obviously strengthens our batting a lot.”
He added of explosive all-rounder Russell: “It's always good to have someone like that in the team, just adding power to the likes of Polly and Pooran to our side. We’ve always believed in having a side with a lot of power in terms of batting.”
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