Pooran ended his career with 1,983 runs in 61 ODIs and 2,275 runs in 106 T20Is.
Former West Indies captain Brian Lara noted the career choices of cricketers, particularly from the Caribbean Islands. He emphasised that players like Nicholas Pooran are retiring early, aiming to play in the franchise league across the globe. He feels it is the failure of the West Indies Cricket Board.
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Rijeka Markhors won by 35 runs
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Perak beat Selangor by 5 wickets
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Hubli Tigers beat Shivamogga Lions by 29 runs
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294/6
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South Africa beat Australia by 53 runs
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Oval Invincibles Women beat Birmingham Phoenix Women by 22 runs
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Pooran drew curtains on his international career after the conclusion of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. The former West Indies skipper ended his career with 1,983 runs in 61 ODIs and 2,275 runs in 106 T20Is. Pooran’s announcement stunned everyone, especially when the southpaw had said he could play 100 more T20Is when he was presented with the 100th T20I cap last November.
“It’s unfortunate (that) a young man at the age of 29, like Nicholas Pooran, will call an end to his international career. Find out why these things are happening and how we can stem that sort of situation, and we get the best players to play for West Indies. Australia, India, and England – and these countries benefit from the wholeheartedness of their players, the passion that they have playing for their country,” Lara said.
Lara believes that players opting out of the series is the result of the West Indies Cricket Board’s failure. The Board has been able to incentivise their players to remain loyal to national jerseys, unlike India, England, and Australia cricket boards.
The legendary cricketer admitted to lucrative deals cricketers are currently getting via franchise leagues, but asserted that the board will have to find a way to motivate its players to balance things out.
“The game has now been very much commercialised. The franchise system is definitely on the mind of every young person and every parent as well. When you see what’s happening around the world with the IPL, the American cricket league (MLC), and much else. The motivational factors we have to tap into: what motivates youngsters today? It might not be just representing the West Indies 365 days of the year. It might be playing in an IPL or a BBL or something else,” Lara said.
Another problem lies in the fact that the West Indies itself isn’t a country. It’s 15 different nation-states and territories that come together to achieve one goal. Hence, CWI faces the challenge of aligning 15 states for one goal and motivating their players to play for the board.
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The Windies are still competitive in the white-ball format, though they failed to qualify for the ODI World Cup 2023 and the 2025 Champions Trophy. But their major concern remains Test cricket. They have recorded a couple of historic wins but haven’t been able to capitalise on them. There has been a massive quality dip in the Test format. Recently, the Windies were skittled out for 27 runs, the second-lowest total in Tests, against Australia at home. The collapse was also one of the major reasons for CWI to hold an ‘emergency’ meeting.
“It’s been that case for years, where we are not on the same level playing field as other playing countries. Back in the days when skill was the prominent factor, we excelled; we were the best team in the world. But the game has evolved, and technology and analytics, and we now have to see a new way of finding ourselves back to being very competitive. I said not a level playing field because a lot of the countries are far ahead in these sorts of areas. The skill factor of the game is still there but not as prominent as it was in the past,” Lara added.
