Nicholas Pooran made history for West Indies cricket during their T20 World Cup 2024 match against New Zealand at Tarouba’s Brian Lara Stadium in Trinidad. The 28-year-old left-handed batsman surpassed Chris Gayle as the leading run-scorer for the Men in Maroon in T20 Internationals.
Needing only three runs to surpass Gayle‘s tally of 1,899 runs, Pooran achieved this milestone with a boundary off the first ball of the third over bowled by Trent Boult. This shot not only took him past Gayle but also placed him at the top of the list for the most runs scored by a West Indian in T20Is.
Before the match, Pooran had accumulated 1,897 runs in 90 matches. By the game’s end, he had added 17 runs from 12 balls, including three boundaries, bringing his total to 1,914 runs in 91 matches. He currently holds an average of 25.52 with a strike rate of 134.03 in T20Is.
Pooran‘s recent performances have been outstanding. He scored 499 runs for the Lucknow Super Giants in IPL 2024 and continued his excellent form in the T20 World Cup warm-up matches. He notably smashed 75 runs off just 25 balls against Australia in a warm-up game, followed by scores of 27 against Papua New Guinea and 22 against Uganda.
As a wicketkeeper-batsman, Pooran carries significant expectations. Apart from breaking Gayle‘s run record, he is also poised to surpass Gayle’s tally of 124 sixes in T20Is, currently standing at 120 sixes and needing five more to claim the top spot for the most sixes by a West Indian batsman in T20Is.
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