Nicholas Pooran steps down as West Indies white-ball captain after World Cup disappointment

Pooran, who won just four out of 17 ODIs in charge and eight of his 23 T20Is, oversaw West Indies' premature exit from the T20 World Cup

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Nicholas Pooran has stepped down as West Indies' white-ball captain after his team's first-round exit from the T20 World Cup.

The 27-year-old batter took over in May a month after Kieron Pollard's international retirement but oversaw a dismal T20 World Cup campaign in Australia, where defeats by Scotland and Ireland ended their attempts to win the tournament for a third time before the Super 12 stage.

Pooran, who won just four out of 17 ODIs in charge and eight of his 23 T20Is, admitted that he had given his future in the role "a great deal of thought" since the nine-wicket defeat by Ireland sealed their premature exit and called captaining his country "an honour like no other".

"I took on the role with great pride and dedication and have given it absolutely everything over the past year," he said. "The T20 World Cup is something that must not define us and I will readily get involved in the upcoming reviews.

"And whilst it will be several months until we reconvene as a squad, I want to give CWI plenty of time to prepare for the matches against South Africa in March and beyond."

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Nicholas Pooran's West Indies side were knocked out of the T20 World Cup in tthe first round (Daniel Pockett/Getty Images)

He added: "This is not me giving up. I remain ambitious and still view the captaincy of West Indies cricket as an honour that is bestowed upon you. There is no doubt I remain fully committed to West Indies cricket and I look forward to providing my services as a senior player in a supportive role.

"By stepping down now as the West Indies white-ball captain I believe it is in the best interests of the team and for me personally, as I need to concentrate on what I can deliver to the side as a player. I desperately want us to be successful and the most value I can give to the team is through fully focusing on the role of consistently scoring runs at crucial times."

Pooran led West Indies in an temporary capacity in 2021 when Pollard was unavailable, including in a T20I series win over Australia. He also oversaw series wins against the Netherlands and Bangladesh. But his own returns with the bat also diminished with the extra responsibility of captaincy.

West Indies don't play again in limited-over cricket until March, when they face South Africa.


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