"I have been around a long time and it is time I step up and take responsibility."
The words of hard hitting T&T and West Indies batsman Keiron Pollard, after his 89 won the first match of the Dhaka Bank Cup for the West Indies on Wednesday in Grenada.
Speaking to the T&T Guardian, Pollard said: "Leading the Barbados Tridents and winning the Limacol Caribbean Premier League (CPL) have definitely made an impact on me in terms of my responsibility to my team's success. As you know I am also married and have two kids, so generally I am a more responsible person now and it is working for me."
Pollard entered the fray with the West Indies in dire straits at 34 for five, chasing 218 for victory. He scored a responsible 89 runs and together with Denesh Ramdin added 145 runs for the sixth wicket, to take the West Indies to a three-wicket victory.
Pollard took his time at the start off his innings and as he got accustomed to the pace of the pitch, he played his natural big-hitting game. He faced 70 balls, hitting five fours and six sixes.
He said: "Although we were in a spot of bother, as soon as I got comfortable with the pace and bounce of the pitch, I played my game. If there are balls that you would normally hit away, it makes no sense not attacking them. If that is your natural game, you have to play it and that is when the success would come. I just played my natural game but I admit, there was a lot more responsibility placed on that knock.
"I am looking forward to getting more runs to assist my team, as we look to take this victory over Bangladesh. The team will play better and better as we go along no doubt."