Powell to focus on long-term development

Jamaica's Rovman Powell wants to become one of the world's top all-round cricketers, and he is clear in his mind on how to achieve that goal. Powell, who recently captained the Windies One-day International (50 overs) team in Bangladesh, has taken the decision not to play in the major Twenty20 leagues across the world this year because he wants to continue his development as a player and believes that playing more first class cricket will help him to progress in the right way.

The 25-year-old, who recently returned from the tour of Bangladesh, said that there were offers on the table for him to play on the lucrative T20 circuit but he was looking at his long-term development instead of the instant remuneration.

"I want to continue improving as a player. That's why I'm back playing four-day cricket. I could have been playing in the Indian Premier League or one of the other T20 leagues, but playing four-day cricket is how you develop as a player, and I think for me, there is a lot more room for development," he told The Gleaner at a Jamaica Scorpions training session on Wednesday.

Powell described his experience as West Indies 50-overs captain as 'invaluable' and says that he aspires to become full-time captain in the future.

Boyhood dream

"It's a boyhood dream to lead the West Indies. It's always a pleasure going out there and putting on the maroon and gold of the West Indies. It is something I wanted to do from I was a youngster and to see it being fulfilled now is definitely a humbling feeling," he said

"The response (from teammates) was good. Each player helped me along the way, and I must commend all 15 on tour. Even the management rallied around me as captain and made it such a good experience ... I now wish I could have won the series but we went down 2-1. But apart from that it was an invaluable experience for me," he commented.

"The captaincy was interim, Jason Holder is the 50-overs captain, so when he is fit and comes back, he will resume his duties, and I will resume my duties as vice-captain. Hopefully, down the road, in the near future, once I have established myself in international cricket, I can get that (captain's) tag."

Powell, who has an average of 23.93 from 34 matches had a below par batting display in Bangladesh, as he scored 14 in the first ODI before being dismissed for one run in the other two games. However, he was quick to deny that the added pressure of the captaincy affected his production.

"To be honest, it (captaincy) did not affect my performance. I am only captain when I was in the field. When I am at the crease I am there as a batsman. There was no pressure," he insisted.

"Batting has let us down over the last few years and the batters are looking to change that. We are aiming to put in better performances. The confidence level is high, so it's just for us to go out and perform," he concluded.