West Indies supply line of power-hitters stays robust
MUMBAI: “Fours means two runs short,” Andre Russell once said. He trades in sixes. It’s the currency in vogue in T20s. And some of the most destructive hitters come from the West Indies. It does not always reflect in the Windies T20 squad, fitness and divided priorities being the main reasons. But an assembly line of West Indies power-hitters feature in T20 leagues around the world, and the best are in demand in IPL.
Call it the Chris Gayle impact. The “Universe Boss” influence on West Indies T20 cricket is akin to their famed fast bowlers of the 70’s and how they inspired the generations that followed. Gayle’s “dot, dot, explode” method is now common but he figured out T20s much before data analysts began wielding influence. The man who struck the first T20I hundred and hit an unbeaten 175 in IPL could do it trusting in his power to decimate bowlers. Gayle may be done now and Kieron Pollard, 35, may be on his last legs. But Russell, 34, is going strong. Rovman Powell, Shimron Hetmyer, Nicholas Pooran, Sherfane Rutherford,
Romario Shepherd and Odean Smith have all found an IPL team, achieving varying degrees of success in their role.
Most of them bat like Gayle, using raw power. “I just think strength is everything. The base, core, shoulders, going through the ball, are very important. I strive for that,” Russell said in a batting demo on KKR’S website. “I don’t do anything (trigger). I just stay as still as I can; then it’s just hand and eye coordination.”
“I stay deep in my crease. I trust that the bowler will miss his yorkers. And if he does, I am in the business,” said Russell. It’s this intimidation that results in bowlers experiencing a meltdown.
Gayle did the same. “Bowlers are always intimidated, from the night or even the week before when they know they’ll be up against Chris Gayle! That’s the fear I strike into them,” he had told HT.
Left-handed Hetmyer has half the IPL experience as Russell. But he ranks No 3 in leading strike rates, scoring at 156. Hetmyer is a vital cog in the Rajasthan Royals wheel. He will return to action on Friday after paternity leave. At 25, there is plenty that Hetmyer has to offer.
At 28, Powell is somewhat of a late bloomer. After not getting a game in 2017 and going unsold in the following auctions, this is a breakout IPL for him, scoring 207 for Capitals at a strike rate of 155 with 18 sixes. Powell was at the centre of action promising to hit 6 sixes in the final over to win against RR before losing momentum halfway through the over after a contentious waist high no-ball claim that was not given. Powell has filled in as West Indies captain but it is his ₹2.8 crore IPL deal that will go some way in fulfilling the promise he once gave his mother, “I will take you out of poverty with my cricket.”
Southpaw Pooran may not be as strongly built as some of his Caribbean team mates but still packs a punch. The newly appointed West Indies T20 skipper is capable of winning from impossible positions once he starts middling the ball.
A lot was expected from Shepherd after his sparkling performance against England earlier this year. But the big-hitting allrounder has been unable to light up IPL in the limited opportunities he has got for SRH. Similarly, Rutherford hasn’t received many opportunities with RCB.