Kieron Pollard smashed 83 off 31 deliveries in what will go down as a iconic Indian Premier League knock to power Mumbai Indians to a thrilling three-wicket win over Kings XI Punjab on Wednesday.
The big-hitting West Indian’s blitz helped hosts Mumbai chase down their target of 198 as he lifted his side from 62/3 after nine overs to single-handedly revive Mumbai’s hopes.
It was a throwback to the time when Pollard was among the most valuable IPL players, with MI continuing to retain him over the years. With this one knock he proved once again that he is one of the most destructive batsmen to have, especially at the end of the innings.
Captaining the team in place of the injured Rohit Sharma, he promoted himself to number four to produce his IPL best in front of a raucous home crowd. The Wankhede Stadium was treated to a display of brutal hitting, with as many as 10 sixes in his innings to smash the record for most runs scores in the last 10 overs of a chase in IPL history.
Also read: When Mumbai Indians needed a miracle, captain Kieron Pollard turned back the clock
His scintillating knock sparked awe and praise on social media, with the cricket fraternity on Twitter expressing variations of the same thought – “unbelievable” and “incredible”. Here’s a look at what Twitter had to say.
Kieron Pollard last 26 balls:
— Broken Cricket (@BrokenCricket) April 10, 2019
6 6 4 0 6 0 1 6 6 2 1 0 1 6 1 0 6 1 4 0 6 6 1 6 4 W
Brilliant innings under pressure!
He may not have the consistent scores, but this is why @mipaltan pay the big bucks for Pollard. He wins them games that they have no business winning. And one or two of those a season are more than enough..#MIvKXIP
— Hemant (@hemantbuch) April 10, 2019
POLLAAAAARRRRDDD welldone big fella.. That’s pollard special 💪🔥 @KieronPollard55 Enjoy your win brother.. congratulations @mipaltan vs @lionsdenkxip well done @klrahul11 brilliant 100 👏👏
— Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh) April 10, 2019
The 133 runs scored in the last 10 overs is the highest in an IPL match to win and 4th highest in all T20s. This was one of the all time great T20 knocks by Kieron Pollard. backed himself to hit the sixes. When Pollard does well MI wins. Mumbai are marching ahead. #IPL2019
— Gaurav Sundararaman (@gaurav_sundar) April 10, 2019
One of the best IPL innings ever. This was a single handed effort with judicious use of awesome power. Take a bow, Pollard!🙏🙏🙏🙏#MIvKXIP
— Sanjay Manjrekar (@sanjaymanjrekar) April 10, 2019
Kieron Pollard is back. Back at his best. Sensational batting. Great finish....
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) April 10, 2019
Unbelievable. Incredible Premier League. #Pollard #MIvKXIP
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) April 10, 2019
Kieron Pollard is back to his best🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥.
— ian bishop (@irbishi) April 10, 2019
POLLARD THE MONSTER!!!!! 🤯🤯🤯🔥🔥🔥 what a stellar innings!!! What conviction!!! Best of the best!!! Captain for the day - leading from the front and inspiring!!! Brilliant !!! 🏏 #MIvKXIP
— Ranveer Singh (@RanveerOfficial) April 10, 2019
What a game!! Pollard is a freak! @mipaltan fans love him and what he does 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 pic.twitter.com/B3EuNTIVOj
— Lisa Sthalekar (@sthalekar93) April 10, 2019
Pollard this season: 21 (13), 5 (6), 7 (9) and then 17* (7), 46* (26), 83 (31). Form is temporary; class is permanent. He's shown that calls to drop him were very premature. A titanic T20 cricketer. #IPL #MIvKXIP https://t.co/hEA3c0OZc0
— Freddie Wilde (@fwildecricket) April 10, 2019
Incredible last ball win for Mumbai. Sensational knock by Pollard, perhaps the best we’ve seen this IPL — for intensity, responsibility and power hitting
— Cricketwallah (@cricketwallah) April 10, 2019
To sum it all up in one GIF
Pollard for Mumbai today. #MIvKXIP pic.twitter.com/qTBdlH1Eme
— Sagar (@sagarcasm) April 10, 2019