Former West Indies captain Nicholas Pooran was one of the most sought-after players in the auction, with a base price of 2 crores. He was pursued by Rajasthan, Delhi, and Lucknow, but it was the KL Rahul-led team, who eventually won the bidding war, securing the player for a whopping 16 crore.
The wicketkeeper-batter was not in form since he took over the captaincy duties for the Caribbean side in the white-ball format. After a humiliating 20-20 World Cup 2022 season, where the West Indies failed to make it to the Super 12, Pooran took a big decision and stepped down from the captaincy role.
Last month, he was let go by Hyderabad. He made appearing in 14 games and made a total of 306 runs with a respectable average of 26.06. His strike rate was an impressive 144+ and was able to hit two half-centuries.
Nicholas Pooran’s performance in the major league so far
Pooran’s journey at the auction has been a fruitful one. After being purchased by Punjab in 2019, for INR 4.20 crore, he received INR 10.75 crore in 2022, followed by INR 16 crore in the most recent auction. Lucknow fans will have high hopes from the wicketkeeper-batter as the franchise aims to claim their maiden title.
Pooran played his first cash-rich league season in 2019. So far, he has played 47 games over the last 4 seasons. He has slammed 912 runs at an average of 26.06 and a strike rate of 151+. Pooran has also slammed 4 fifties in the league with a top knock of an unbeaten 64.
The West Indies player has played 52 ODIs and 72 T20Is so far. In 52 ODIs, the left-handed batsman has smacked 1555 runs at an average of 36.16. He has also hit 1 century and 11 half-centuries for the team. In 72 T20Is, he has mustered 1427 runs at an average of 25.48 and a strike rate of 129+. He has also slammed 9 half-centuries in the shortest format with a top knock of 74 runs in one game. Pooran is yet to play any Test match for West Indies.
Here’s how fans reacted:
Firse kharab khelega aur next yr auction me ayega firse 10cr+ lega
— hunter (@hunter__108) December 23, 2022
Clowns spending so much for him🥴 players like Jagadeeshan will do better
— Koushik Reddy ✨#Globetrotting 🔥✨ (@Kowshik04616113) December 23, 2022
What IPL teams see in Nicholas Pooran, he himself can't see.
— Silly Point (@FarziCricketer) December 23, 2022
Poorest of poor pick today at that amount
— Bharbhuti ji (@crickdevil) December 23, 2022
Lifting West Indies economy
— 🕉️Shivu🇮🇳 (@Shivu_Memes) December 23, 2022
Jindagi ho to pooran jaisi ho kyuki wo krta kuch nahi hai lekin paise bharpoor milte hai 🤣🤣
— 😎 (@cricmahi7) December 23, 2022
Bc isko har baar itne paise kaise mil jate hai
— Sarcastic ladka (@Sarcasticladkaa) December 23, 2022
mediocre players getting this much???
— Shin (@dmonke9) December 23, 2022
