'He's a fantastic cricketer, has ability to go far places': Kieron Pollard on youngster

Kieron Pollard said Fabian Allen is a ‘fantastic cricketer’ who has the ability to go ‘far places’ after he emerged as one of West Indies' top performers in the ongoing T20Is against South Africa.

West Indies limited-overs skipper Kieron Pollard was all praise for young all-rounder Fabian Allen. Pollard said Allen is a ‘fantastic cricketer’ who has the ability to go ‘far places’.

Kieron Pollard (Twitter)

Fabian Allen had a herculean task of scoring 8 runs off the final two balls of the third T20I against Kagiso Rabada. The right-arm seamer bowled a superb yorker, denying West Indies a run off the penultimate and practically sealing South Africa’s victory. Allen showed what might have happened had Rabada missed his mark in the previous ball. The talented cricketer ended the game with a six but West Indies lost the match by 1 run.

“Fabian did well with the ball in the first game, and then he showed what he can do with the bat in the second. As a cricketer, I think he's a fantastic cricketer all round. He has the ability to go far places, and hence the reason why we want and we have him around the setup because we know what he can offer,” Pollard said.

Allen was a standout performer for West Indies in the previous two T20Is.

“It was fantastic to see him, even though it was sort of far-fetched at the end, he going out and showing that you know what despite the situation, despite whatever, there's always hope. So long may performance continue and I just hope that he continues to make use of all the opportunities you know that he gets. And it would only augur well, you know, for him in the future and for West Indies cricket as well. So, you know, all youngsters and everybody you know long may continue, but I think he's a special talent,” said Pollard.

In the nail-biting contest on Tuesday which gave South Africa a 2-1 lead in the five-match series, Quinton de Kock scored 72 from 51 balls as South Africa made 167-8 batting first and Tabraiz Shamsi's 2-13 from four overs helped the Proteas defend a total that proved only just adequate.

The West Indies came to the last over, bowled by Kagiso Rabada, needing 15 runs to win with three wickets in hand. Rabada bowled full, angling into the batter and leg stump, supported by a stacked leg-side field, and Fabian Allen and Dwayne Bravo were unable to swing freely.

The over didn't start well for Rabada who just missed his line in the first ball and conceded a wide. But two of his next three deliveries passed between the batsman's legs; the other went for four.

West Indies took two from the fourth ball, leaving the hosts needing eight runs from the last two deliveries. Rabada tipped the match South Africa's way with a yorker which denied the West Indies a run from the penultimate ball.

Allen struck the last ball of the match for six, finishing 14 not out from nine balls, as the West Indies finished agonizingly short on 166-7.

(The fourth T20I will take place at the National Cricket Stadium, St George’s, Grenada on 1 July 2021 at 11:30 PM IST. South Africa’s tour of the West Indies includes 2 concluded Tests and 5 ongoing T20Is, which will end on July 03. As FanCode is the new official broadcaster for West Indies cricket in India, the complete tour is exclusively live-streamed on the FanCode App and www.fancode.com.)