West Indies player Rovman Powell is part of the Delhi Capitals squad at IPL 2022. In the opening matches of this IPL season his bat was silent but now he is scoring a lot of runs. In the match against Rajasthan Royals, when Delhi needed 36 runs to win the last 6 balls, this player brought the excitement of the match to its peak by hitting three sixes in the first three balls. In Thursday night’s IPL match, Rovman played a brilliant inning of 67 runs on 35 balls against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Thanks to his innings, Delhi managed to record a win by 21 runs. But do you know what kind of struggle this Windies player had to go through to get to this stage of cricket? If you don’t know, read this article. (Note: Tickets are taken from the Caribbean Premier League documentary.)
Rovman Powell’s mother, Joan Plummer, was a single mother. In fact, when she became pregnant, her partner advised her to have an abortion. When Plummer decided not to have an abortion, the couple broke up with them, and thus Rowman’s parents separated. All responsibility for raising Rowman now rested with his mother. John Plummer was very poor. As such, his livelihood was jugaad.
Rovman Powell is seen saying in a documentary: ‘I have no words to describe my mother. I grew up watching him wash people’s clothes. She used to do this just to make arrangements for our food and to go to school. Powell says: ‘Our family lived in a house with a dilapidated tin roof. There were two rooms, in one the food was cooked and in the other we all lived. When it rained at night, the water would start to leak all over the room. We used to store the mattress in a place where water wouldn’t seep. The water filled around the mattress. It also comes out in the documentary that Powell also used to go goat herding. This used to get them some money.
Rovman’s mother, Joan Plummer, says: ‘He (Rovman) always put himself in the elderly category. Like the head of the family. As she relates an old anecdote, she says: ‘One day he came home from school with a bat in one hand. I told her that today there is only a little food for her and her sister. He then he tells mommy not to worry. I’ll get you out of this poverty through cricket. John Plummer says that this moment was one of the most beautiful moments of his life. She says: ‘Since he told me this, I have never doubted his talent. I gave him my full support.
Nicholas Dhillon, one of Rovman’s teachers, says: ‘Once upon a time, in sixth grade, I assigned Rovman to do some activities for his father. Rowman yelled, ‘Sir, I don’t know my father, so I can’t do it.’ I told him not to put an obstacle in his way. I promised him that I would not let his father’s absence be felt in his life.
