Kieron Pollard last played an ODI in October 2016 but may still have hopes of making it to the West Indies World Cup squad because of a new set-up running Cricket West Indies (CWI). After smashing his highest IPL score - 83 off 31 balls - to help Mumbai Indians edge Kings XI Punjab in a last-ball finish in Mumbai on Wednesday night, Pollard was asked if he thought he would be picked in the World Cup squad that will be announced later this month, and he indirectly said anything could be possible.

"Every time I get the opportunity to play, I want to do my best," Pollard said. "There has been a lot of turmoil in West Indies cricket over the last couple of years. We have seen in the last couple of weeks there's a change. Pollard was one of the guys blacklisted. The most I can do every time I step on the cricket field is try to put runs on the board. There's people there who have the job to select and whatever and let's see how that goes. As I said, I'm 31 years, Chris Gayle is still playing, he's 39, and he's whacking it all around."

Pollard was referring to Dave Cameron's controversial reign as the CWI president coming to an end last month when Ricky Skerritt, a former West Indies team manager, beat Cameron by an 8-4 margin in the board elections. Cameron had several fallouts with senior West Indies players, especially Darren Sammy who led them to two World T20 titles.

ALSO READ: Smart Stats - Kieron Pollard easily outshines KL Rahul

When asked if West Indies could be one of the stronger sides at the World Cup, given the form of some of the West Indies players in the IPL, Pollard said: "Yeah, of course you can say that. But again, as I said that's why there's people…we have a new chairman of selectors, there's a new president of the cricket board, and as I said you take it as it comes. Last year, you might not have been asking me that question. Yes, I scored runs tonight so all sorts of questions will come but for me it's just about enjoying cricket and doing my best with my god-given talent.

"We know what we can do and I think Chris batted superbly. A fellow West Indian is [Andre] Russell…he's smacking the ball and it's great to see the way he's hitting the ball and [Sunil] Narine. These guys are having a good tournament and again, when your mind is free, you just go out and enjoy cricket. You don't think about much because there are a lot of opinions, there are a lot of things, but it's people as close to you and what they think matters."

Pollard had recently returned to the T20I squad for West Indies when in October it emerged that the door was opening for some senior players to feature in the World Cup. CWI officials had stated that availability for domestic tournaments was a requirement to be picked for West Indies squads, and they advanced the domestic 50-over competition (Super50 Cup) from February 2019 to October 2018 to avoid a clash with any T20 leagues. CWI had said if the players featured in the Super50 and performed, they could be picked for the World Cup.

Pollard represented his domestic side Trinidad & Tobago in all seven games but with unimpressive figures - 69 runs from seven innings to average under 10, and took three wickets in the 50 balls he bowled in the tournament.

However, Pollard then went on to score 284 runs in the PSL in 13 innings at a strike rate of 173.17, and take five wickets, for Peshawar Zalmi. In the IPL, he has so far scored 179 runs in six innings, with two unbeaten knocks, to average 44.75, and is striking at 194.56.

A picture from the Big Bash of Moises Henriques leaping for a catch at the SCG has been named the Wisden-MCC Cricket Photograph of the Year.

The photo taken by Phil Hillyard of New Corp was captured on December 27 when Henriques plucked the ball out of the air to remove Melbourne Stars' Nick Larkin.

Hillyard took the top prize of GBP2000 from over 700 entries from professional and amateur photographers.

Hillyard said: "It's such an honour to win the Wisden-MCC Photo of the Year for a sport I am so passionate about and have spent much of my career covering.

"I love the game of cricket, its people and the challenge of photographing it. I feel very privileged that my image will be on display at Lord's, the Home of Cricket.

"A big thank you from me goes to Moises Henriques for taking such a great catch at the wonderful Sydney Cricket Ground."

The competition was judged by a panel chaired by Chris Smith, the former Chief Sports Photographer of The Sunday Times>, and this year he was joined, for the first time, by Diana Keen, Senior Production Manager at Sunset+Vine.

The rest of the panel comprised acclaimed cricket photographers Patrick Eagar and Adrian Murrell, music photographer Kevin Cummins and former art director of The Cricketer, Nigel Davies.

Tearaway quick James Pattinson could win Australia two Ashes Tests if he is used wisely and sparingly in the five-match series, according to his Victoria coach Andrew McDonald.

Pattinson, 28, has not played a Test match for Australia since February 2016 due to a serious back injury. But after returning from successful surgery he played a pivotal role in Victoria's Sheffield Shield triumph this season including taking seven wickets in the final with some vicious spells.

He will play for Nottinghamshire in the early part of the county season but McDonald believes he could be a key performer in the Ashes if he is used in short bursts.

"I think he's a two-Test player that can win you those two Test matches," McDonald told SEN. "I think when he plays Australia's odds increase greatly in terms of winning the Test match but we can't get over-excited in terms of what his body can cope with.

"I think we [Victoria] played him in seven games this year, 151 overs in seven games and really managed him throughout the summer. We had the luxury because we believed his batting could be of allrounder status at first-class level. Can it be of all-rounder level at Test match cricket level? I think the jury is out on that. So two Test matches for mine with a huge focus on when the conditions suit."

Pattinson was used as part of a five-man bowling attack for Victoria which featured four fast bowlers and a specialist spinner. Australia are unlikely to opt for a five-man attack in the Ashes and therefore McDonald said he could only be used on bowler-friendly surfaces where the game could be over in three or four days.

"If it was a flatter surface you wanted to pick him on then he'd definitely have to be part of a four-man pace attack," McDonald said. "I think the surface will dictate what the formation of the line-up will be and [Nathan] Lyon plays every game.

"Pick your moments, and he could be a matchwinner in those couple of Test matches. But if he has to bowl heavy overs on flat surfaces I think that will probably accelerate the process of potentially injuring him again."

McDonald believes Pattinson is world class when he's at his best. "I think Cameron White was on a radio station and said he's the best in the world. Well if he's in full flight he's close to it - pace, swing, and aggression as well. He makes things happen and I think he would be an intimidating factor for the English batsmen to overcome."

Australia's Ashes squad is set to be named just a matter of days before the series begins on August 1 at Edgbaston.

NEW YORK -- Jackie Young said it was a dream come true to be taken first in the WNBA draft.

The Notre Dame guard, who was able to declare early because she turns 22 in the same year as the draft, was selected No. 1 by the Las Vegas Aces on Wednesday night.

She's the second Irish player to be drafted first after entering early, joining Jewell Loyd, who had the honor in 2015. It's the third consecutive year the Aces have had the No. 1 pick. They took Kelsey Plum in 2017 when the franchise was still in San Antonio. The Aces then drafted A'ja Wilson last season with the No. 1 pick when the franchise moved to Las Vegas.

Young, the only junior available in this year's draft, said she was excited to be joining the Aces.

"It means the world to me," Young said. "This is what I worked for my whole life. You always dream of being the first pick, but to actually be able to achieve that is just crazy."

The 6-foot Young averaged 14.7 points, 7.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game this season for Notre Dame. Her size, quickness and versatility at guard are qualities that should translate well for Las Vegas.

Young wasn't thrilled that she didn't have much time to make her decision after the Irish lost the championship game Sunday night to Baylor. She had 24 hours to decide whether she wanted to turn pro or go back to play for the Irish.

"It was definitely a hard process for me,'' Young said. "I had to sit down, talk to my family, talk to Coach [Muffet] McGraw and make the best decision for me.''

Young was the first of five Notre Dame players to be drafted. Arike Ogunbowale went fifth to Dallas. Brianna Turner went 11th to the Atlanta Dream. She was later traded to the Phoenix Mercury for Maria Gulich. Jessica Shepard was taken 16th by the Minnesota Lynx. Marina Mabrey was the fifth Notre Dame player to go, drafted 19th by the Los Angeles Sparks.

"It's a historic moment for our program,'' McGraw said. "We've had a lot of accomplishments, but this one stands alone. It's probably something that will never happen again. Because of the injury to Bri and Jess coming in, it's atypical of having that kind of class. But it's incredible what they accomplished.''

Tennessee is the only other school to have that occur with college players, in 2008. Candace Parker was taken first. Alexis Hornbuckle was drafted fourth. Shannon Bobbitt and Nicky Anosike went back-to-back in the second round and Alberta Auguste was taken in the third round.

This might have been the most wide-open draft in recent memory, with no consensus pick at No. 1.

Asia Durr went second to the New York Liberty. The Louisville guard, who was a two-time AP All-American, was the No. 2 scorer in school history.

Asked when she first started thinking about getting drafted, Durr joked, "Honestly, I think I was sitting in my mom's womb. Tonight, I was about to cry, and I don't cry. This is a dream come true."

Durr said she looks forward to playing for a Hall of Fame guard in Liberty coach Katie Smith.

"It's awesome," Durr said. "I'm very grateful for it, and I'm ready to get to work."

The Indiana Fever took Mississippi State center Teaira McCowan at No. 3. McCowan said she sees her role with the Fever being similar to what she has done for the Bulldogs the past four years.

"I rebound and I block shots," said McCowan, who averaged 18.4 points, 13.5 rebounds and 2.4 blocks as a senior. "Whatever my coaches are going to give me, I'm going to fill that role. I'm not going to ask why, I'm just going to get it done."

Chicago drafted a UConn player for the second consecutive season, taking Katie Lou Samuelson fourth and reconnecting her with former Huskies teammate Gabby Williams.

Samuelson's older sister, Karlie, played last season with the Sparks. Asked the main thing Karlie has told her about what's needed in the WNBA, Samuelson replied, "Confidence in yourself. Understanding how much work and time you have to put into it."

Another UConn player went sixth, with Napheesa Collier headed to four-time WNBA champion Minnesota.

Collier won't get a chance to play with Lynx star Maya Moore this season, as Moore is taking this season off. But Collier is looking forward to playing with the former UConn star.

"It's going to be amazing," Collier said. "To know she's a part of that team means a lot to me."

Moore is first on the Huskies' all-time scoring list, and Collier is third.

The Lynx had a busy draft taking Shepard and Cierra Dillon of Buffalo in the second round. They also traded Natisha Hiedeman, whom they drafted 16th to Connecticut for Lexie Brown. They drafted Kenisha Bell of Minnesota in the third round.

The Sparks took Baylor center Kalani Brown seventh. It has been a whirlwind 72 hours for the 6-foot-7 center as she helped Baylor win a national championship on Sunday.

Australian Alanna Smith, who helped Stanford win the Pac-12 tournament title, was drafted eighth by Phoenix. The Mercury are coached by fellow Aussie Sandy Brondello. Kristine Anigwe went ninth to Connecticut. The Cal center, who led the nation in rebounding, was the national defensive player of the year. Washington took Kiara Leslie with the 10th pick and Ezi Magbegor closed out the opening round by going to defending champion Seattle.

Chinese sensation Han Xu was drafted 14th by the New York Liberty. The 6-foot-9 center became the first Chinese player drafted since 1997. There was some talk that Han wouldn't be able to play this summer as she would have to compete for the Chinese national team. She said that she expected to play for New York this summer.

The WNBA season opens on May 24 with training camps opening up a few weeks earlier.

ESPN's Mechelle Voepel and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

NEW YORK -- Coach Kim Mulkey would welcome an invitation to the White House, if President Donald Trump were to offer it to Baylor.

The president tweeted out his congratulations to the Lady Bears on Monday after they beat Notre Dame in a thrilling championship game the night before.

"Congratulations to the Baylor Lady Bears on their amazing win last night against Notre Dame to become the 2019 NCAA Women's Basketball National Champions!" Trump said.

Mulkey, who visited the White House in 2005 and 2012 when her Baylor team won the title those years, said a trip to the White House isn't about politics.

"I've been every time for every president," she told the AP at the WNBA draft Wednesday night. "It's not a political issue for me. It's an honor to go to the White House. I want everyone to say they went to the White House. Not many people can say that. I hope [the] Virginia men go and I can meet [coach] Tony Bennett.

"We were honored when President Bush was in the office. We were honored when Barack Obama was in the office. We'd be honored if Donald Trump invited us. With politics aside, we should go to say we went to the White House."

Baylor would be the first women's college basketball champion to visit the White House under Trump, if offered.

PHILADELPHIA -- Joel Embiid's achy left knee may prevent the All-Star from playing in the Philadelphia 76ers' playoff opener.

General manager Elton Brand said Wednesday that Embiid was expected to play in the postseason, but added it was "possible" the 7-foot center wouldn't be ready for the first game. Embiid sat out Wednesday's regular-season finale against Chicago, his fifth absence in seven games to close out the season.

Embiid is averaging 27.5 points and 13.6 rebounds but has missed 14 games since the All-Star break due to rest and injury.

Philadelphia, the No. 3 seed, will play either Orlando or Brooklyn in the first round of the playoffs.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant picked up his 16th technical foul during the first quarter of Wednesday's regular-season finale against the Memphis Grizzlies, but he will not be suspended because the amount of technical fouls does not carry over into the postseason.

The technical foul was called with 9:39 left in the first quarter, leaving both Durant and Warriors coach Steve Kerr perplexed as to why referee Kane Fitzgerald blew the whistle.

"[Fitzgerald] said I bumped into him after I was walking back to the scorer's table," Durant explained after the game. "I did bump into him, but it wasn't intentionally, and I was going to wipe my feet off. He thought I was following him to the scorer's table. But you guys see I wipe my foot off after every stop of play.

"So, it was miscommunication; we talked about it and said he was going to look at it. I'm sure he's going to send it in to the league to get that rescinded."

After the technical foul was initially called, Kerr immediately turned to Warriors senior vice president of communications Raymond Ridder sitting courtside and asked, "Is he going to get suspended?" Ridder shook his head no, giving Kerr and the Warriors peace of mind heading into Game 1 of the postseason this weekend.

Durant, along with Kerr, spent the ensuing timeout in a long discussion with Fitzgerald about why the technical foul was called. Durant and Fitzgerald had a cordial back-and-forth, but Durant clearly was frustrated that the T was called in the first place.

Durant said he was never concerned about a possible suspension.

"I knew it starts over in the playoffs," Durant said. "And I kind of figured [Fitzgerald] would rescind that one anyway, so I wasn't too nervous."

Durant, who sat out Tuesday's win at the New Orleans Pelicans because of the flu, finished with 21 points and six assists in 18 minutes against the Grizzles.

The Warriors lost 132-117 and finished the regular season at 57-25, the best record in the Western Conference. They will begin a first-round playoff series this weekend at home against the LA Clippers.

In a significant blow to the Boston Celtics' hopes of a long postseason run, guard Marcus Smart has suffered a torn left oblique and could miss the opening two rounds of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Boston issued a statement Wednesday night saying Smart would resume basketball activities in four to six weeks, a timeline that could sideline him through the team's first-round matchup against the Indiana Pacers and, if they advance, a likely second-round matchup against the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks.

Smart was injured in a home loss to the Orlando Magic on Sunday.

He has played a significant role for the Celtics this season, and a difficult pathway to emerge out of the East only becomes more difficult with the guard's loss.

Smart, 25, has averaged 8.9 points, 2.9 rebounds and 4 assists, but his defense and grittiness separates him, especially in the playoffs.

In Smart's absence, the Celtics will almost certainly revert back to Jaylen Brown as the team's starting shooting guard -- as he was for the opening few weeks of Boston's season. But after the Celtics struggled through the first 20 games of the season, Smart was inserted into the starting lineup, and Boston quickly rattled off an eight-game winning streak. Smart and the Celtics never looked back, and Smart was expected to be an integral part of the team's hopes for a deep playoff run over the next two months.

Brown looked out of sorts early in the season as he tried to adjust to the reintroduction of both Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward to the mix in Boston, but Brown has thrived over the past few months coming off the bench. Presuming Brown does, in fact, return to the starting lineup now, Boston will be hoping he can carry that momentum over into the postseason -- though Brown has been dealing with back issues of his own over the past week or so.

Smart, 25, has had a career season for the Celtics, after signing a four-year, $52 million contract as a restricted free agent last summer. He is shooting a career-best 42.2 percent from the field, including another career-best 36.4 percent from 3-point range, and Smart is expected to be named to one of the league's All-Defensive teams for his work alongside Irving in Boston's backcourt.

Smart suffered his injury during the third quarter of Sunday's loss to the Orlando Magic in Boston, a meaningless game for the Celtics, who already were locked into the fourth seed and a first-round matchup against the Pacers, beginning this weekend. And it happened on a strange play, as Smart collided with Magic center Nikola Vucevic while chasing Evan Fournier down the lane, then crashed to the ground, holding his side.

Boston eventually called a timeout, and Smart limped to the bench -- only to convince the training staff that he was all right and could stay in the game. But after the Celtics had the ball for one offensive possession -- on which Smart was clearly moving gingerly -- Smart called for the bench to replace him as he limped back on defense before falling to the floor, writhing in pain and holding his side. Eventually, he got to his feet and, with the help of trainers, hobbled to the locker room.

ESPN's Tim Bontemps contributed to this report.

Playing without an injured Blake Griffin, the Detroit Pistons beat the New York Knicks 115-89 on Wednesday to secure a playoff berth.

The Pistons (41-41) finished in eighth place in the Eastern Conference and will face the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs.

Detroit needed to win on the final night of the season to qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2016.

If the Pistons lost on Wednesday and the Charlotte Hornets (39-43) had beaten the Orlando Magic, Detroit would have missed the playoffs. The Magic defeated the Hornets 122-114.

Other Eastern Conference playoff matchups decided on the final night of the season:

The Brooklyn Nets secured the sixth seed with a 113-94 win over the Miami Heat in Dwayne Wade's final game.

Brooklyn will face the third-seeded Philadelphia 76ers in the first round of the playoffs.

The Magic secured the seventh seed and will face the Toronto Raptors in the first round. The other Eastern Conference series is fourth-seeded Boston against No. 5 seed Indiana.

With Griffin out due to a sore left knee, Detroit leaned on Luke Kennard against New York in the season finale. Kennard had 27 points on 9-for-14 shooting off the Pistons' bench. Andre Drummond added 20 points and 18 rebounds and Reggie Jackson had 21 points and 7 assists.

Griffin has been the focal point of the Detroit offense, averaging 24.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game this season.

Detroit's win leaves Charlotte short of a playoff spot in a summer in which star point guard Kemba Walker will test free agency.

Hornets coach James Borrego summed up the season succinctly.

"We were one game from the playoffs,'' he said after a loss that had little significance after Detroit's win against the Knicks. "Literally one game away from the playoffs. Where we are as an organization, we are in a healthy place.''

The big question for the Hornets is whether Walker, who had 43 points against Orlando, will return. Walker said he had no idea.

Borrego indicated he wanted Walker back.

"I love that kid,'' he said. "He inspires me. I love coaching him, and I look forward to coaching him for many years to come.''

ESPN's David Newton contributed to this report.

NEW YORK -- Dwyane Wade's final NBA game also marked something else: a reunion of the Banana Boat Crew, so nicknamed for a photograph that surfaced of the group on vacation in 2015.

Moments before Wednesday night's game at Barclays Center between Wade's Miami Heat and the Brooklyn Nets tipped off, LeBron James, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony exited the arena's underground elevator inside a private SUV and walked into the bowl of the arena just as the night's rendition of the national anthem was being completed.

James' Lakers played the Blazers in Los Angeles the previous night, Paul was in Oklahoma City on Tuesday with the Rockets, and Anthony lives in New York. All three were able to get to their seats in the corner of the court across from Miami's bench in time for a tribute video honoring Wade before pregame introductions to be played.

Wade, who was introduced first to a standing ovation by the crowd, then went over and hugged each of his friends before taking the court in the starting lineup. Once the game began, he gave everyone in attendance something to remember as he secured a triple-double by the end of the third quarter. Wade finished with 25 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in 36 minutes during a 113-94 loss to Brooklyn.

"Listen, we all started this journey together," James told Fox Sports Southeast during an interview early in the second quarter, when asked why the three of them came to the game. "Obviously CP came into the league a couple years after us, but we have a brotherhood that is just so much more than basketball. CP played last night, we had our last regular-season game last night, and Melo is right here in New York so we kind of made the plan and made the decision to come up here."

After scoring 30 points in the final home game of his career Tuesday night in a win over the Philadelphia 76ers, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra did his best to downplay expectations for an encore performance from Wade before Wednesday night's game. It turns out he was simply being cautions, as Wade's triple-doubled proved.

"Yeah, in a normal circumstance this would 1,000 percent be considered load management and protection," Spoelstra said. "There's no guarantees that this will be like last night. He let it all out there, including the postgame celebration. It was an incredible night. It was beautiful, and just everything probably played out as well as you possibly could imagine it, dream of it, in a scenario like that.

"That just doesn't happen for most pro athletes. I'm very grateful like everyone else in Miami and the organization to have been part of a night like that."

James, who narrated the part of the tribute video honoring Wade about the four years they spent together in South Florida that played before Tuesday's game against the Sixers, was asked Wednesday what were his favorite memories of playing with Wade.

"I mean, we'd be here all night talking," he said with a smile. "We'd be here all night talking about the best memories, or the most fond memories I have of D-Wade.

"The plane rides, the bus rides, the hotels. When we get to the city we'd go to the hotel room and just chop it up, the dinners we had on the road, everything we did was always genuine. [There was] always love, and we always wanted the best for one another, no matter the good or the bad.

"I will say the most founding part was when we lost [to Dallas in 2011]. Because, without '11, there's no [2013], no [2012 championship] banners hanging up in [AmericanAirlines Arena]. That's what made us. That's what made our team.

"It's been an unbelievable journey for my guy, and I'm happy to be here for the last little part of the road before the train comes to a stop."

Wade fell trying to do his famous leap onto the scorer's table during his postgame celebration Tuesday night, and tweeted Wednesday afternoon about getting treatment on his knee ahead of the final game of his NBA career.

According to Wade's wife, actress Gabrielle Union, he had no idea his friends were going to be in attendance for Wednesday's game, and wasn't even sure he'd be able to play after his fall the night before.

@DwyaneWade did not know his friends were coming. He wasnt sure he could even play after his fall last night. Perfect ending. https://t.co/ewAyGRVTIT

— Gabrielle Union (@itsgabrielleu) April 11, 2019

In addition to James, Wade and Anthony, Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker and Tom Crean, Wade's coach at Marquette, attended Wednesday's game.