Nicholas Pooran Follows The Heinrich Klaasen Way, Lucknow Super Giants Star's International Retirement Is Big Reality Check To The ICC

Just like Heinrich Klaasen, Nicholas Pooran has decided to hang up his boots from international cricket. The swashbuckling Caribbean southpaw will not represent the West Indies anymore on the world stage. In recent years, Nicholas Pooran has taken massive strides in world cricket, and he was one of the key members in the Caribbean team's leadership group. But this is not the end for Pooran and his heroics on the cricketing field. He will continue to play franchise cricket and entertain the fans with his power-hitting prowess.

This is the year of retirements, and there is no doubt about it. The likes of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Angelo Mathews, and Heinrich Klaasen have announced their retirement from different formats of the game. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma retired from Test cricket, whereas Glenn Maxwell announced his retirement from ODI cricket. Pooran and Klaasen have taken the more conventional way, and they have announced their retirement from all forms of international cricket.

Pooran and Klaasen's international retirement is a big wake-up call for the ICC

Cricket is headed towards the football way, and it is becoming more evident with every passing day. Franchise cricket is spreading its wings, and this puts the fate of international cricket in doubt. The likes of Jimmy Neesham, Trent Boult, and Kane Williamson started this trend of denying central contracts from their own boards so that they can play franchise cricket all around the globe and pick and choose national commitments on their own will.

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The International Cricket Council (ICC) must understand that a tight international schedule alongside a gruelling franchise commitment is something that takes too much out of the players. At a time when cricket faces a crisis over viewership and ODIs are dying a slow death, the apex cricketing body will have to try, think, and pave a way for cricketers to manage their workload and schedules.

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Nicholas Pooran's International Career In Numbers

The former West Indies skipper did not enjoy a great time as the Caribbean skipper, and under his leadership, the West Indies failed to qualify for the T20 World Cup. While playing for the West Indies, Pooran scored 1,983 runs from 61 ODIs at an average of 39.66 and 2,275 runs from 106 T20Is at an average of 26.15.

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