The Sunday Mail
Online Reporter
West Indies all-rounder Keemo Paul appears ready to give the two-time World Cup champions a much-needed lift in their bid to qualify for the 2023 ICC World Cup that will be hosted by India later this year.
Paul has returned to the West Indies ODI fold after almost a year, having made his last appearance for the Caribbean Islanders in July last year.
And the 25-year-old all-rounder is determined to make his return to the white-ball format in style, as he seeks to help West Indies qualify for the World Cup.
“I definitely think I am a match-winner. I always try to be positive and I always try to be my own hype man,” said Paul.
“I just try to motivate myself as much as possible. People may say that I am a match-winner, but I want to prove it.
“I am at a stage now in my career, where I need to do better and where I need to actually stand up as a match-winner and put in those performances.
“Every game, I go there with that mentality now to be a match-winner, so, I think it is going to come very, very soon.”
“I have been out for a while and to come back, I am just really excited to play some cricket and to perform back amongst my friends, people that I call my second family.”
Paul believes his hiatus from the ODI squad has made him mentally stronger.
“I have always been a hard worker, but I would say I have had to dial in more on specifics and get mentally tough to get back here.
“Cricket is all about being mentally strong. It was just about speaking to the right people, getting the right motivation and also motivating myself,” he said.
West Indies are in group A together with hosts Zimbabwe, the United States of America, Nepal and the Netherlands.
They start their campaign with a date against the United States on Sunday at Takashinga Sports Club in Highfield.
