West Indies are ready to redeem themselves after two failed T20 World Cup campaigns (in 2021 and 2022), says the team’s batting mainstay and player in form Nicholas Pooran. With the West Indies co-hosting the 20-team tournament alongside the USA starting June 2, with the former champions playing Papua New Guinea on the opening day, Pooran said the team is hungry to rekindle that winning feeling that Daren Sammy’s men felt during their last triumph in 2016 in India.

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“Coming back in here after two years, everybody wants to get that special feeling we had when we won those two T20 World Cups. I feel like everybody wants that moment again. They want to be a part of that winning feeling. Doing it in front of our fans is even more special,” Pooran said in a chat with ESPNcricinfo. 

Meanwhile, West Indies failed to reach the semis in the UAE (in 2021) and progress past the first round in Australia the following year. Pooran, who led the mighty West Indies side during that edition, quit white-ball captaincy right after that, with the board appointing Rovman Powell as the new captain. Fast forward two years, the team and the players are now on the same page, with Pooran saying they learnt their lessons the hard way. 

“We all have grown as players, as team-mates as well,” he said. 

“When we played in Australia, where we didn’t qualify, everyone was hurt. I resigned [from] captaincy after that as well. Everyone was hurt. But we are no longer that group of guys,” the left-handed batter continued.

‘We know the stakes’

Knowing what is at stake, given the West Indies are playing the format they are most successful in, and that too at home, Pooran said the team wants to redeem themselves with winning performances this time. He added since most guys play franchise-based T20 Leagues worldwide, they are aware of the professionalism needed here.

“We all know what’s at stake here. We all know that we have an opportunity to obviously redeem ourselves, make our cricket fans in the Caribbean and our cricket fans all over the world proud of us [and] happy. This time around, we are much better players as well. Most of our guys that play franchise cricket, they understand what is needed to be a professional as well,” Pooran added. 

In the leadup to the 20-team tournament, West Indies hosted South Africa for three T20Is, sweeping them comfortably despite not having most of their T20 WC-bound players. 

“If you just look at the series we played against South Africa, a few guys were missing, but we were able to win that series 3-nil,” Pooran said. 

“You saw the performances; you saw that guys are fighting, and that’s really important. We may win, we may not win, but what’s more important for me, as a senior player as well, is that we need to give it 100% on and off the field.”

“It’s not about us, it’s about our team, 100%. It’s important for me to continue to share that message: that it’s not about me or ourselves. It’s not about us at all. It’s all about what we can do for this team to be successful in the end,” he added.

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