Missed opportunity (4 February 1999)

4 February 1999

Missed opportunity

Tony Becca

Jamaica slipped to their second defeat in the Busta Cup when they lost to Trinidad and Tobago at Sabina Park on Tuesday and, as was the case against Guyana, the main reason was the home team's poor batting. After winning the toss and electing to bat, Jamaica were dismissed for 161 and from there on, despite two fine performances by Tony Powell and Nehemiah Perry in the second innings, they were always under pressure.

It is possible, however, that Jamaica, despite setting Trinidad and Tobago a target of only 137 runs, could have won the game and when he looks back at it, captain James Adams may admit that he made three blunders and missed an opportunity to tick off what would have been a memorable victory.

The first blunder was the captain's failure to open the bowling in the second innings with medium-pacer Laurie Williams instead of Audley Sanson; the second was not to use Williams at all; and the third was the belated introduction of Perry.

After setting Trinidad and Tobago a small score, Jamaica had nothing to play with, they should have thrown their best at the batsmen from the beginning and on that pitch, against those batsmen, and remembering their performances in the tournament up to then, it should have been Dwight Mais and Williams followed as quickly as possible by Perry.

It seems strange, even if there was a good reason to start with him, that although he never looked like getting a wicket, Sanson was allowed to bowl five overs and the experienced and successful Williams did not bowl even one ball and more importantly that Perry, the man with the best chance of winning the match for Jamaica and who scared Trinidad and Tobago with three quick wickets, did not get the ball until the score was 44 for one. By then, despite a brilliant bid which saw Trinidad and Tobago in some trouble at 95 for five, it was really too late. Too many runs in the already small target had already been scored. Mais and Williams were the bowlers most likely to give Jamaica the early breakthrough which was necessary and they should have started the attack. Perry was the man most likely to win the match for Jamaica and even if the ball was not ideal for him to grip it properly, he should have been given it earlier when a few quick wickets would really have put the fear of god into the Trinidadian batsmen.

It may not have worked, but Mais and Williams followed by Perry was Jamaica's best bet to capitalise on the second innings recovery spearheaded by Powell and Perry with the bat.

Captains, however, sometimes do strange things. On the same day, in far away Cape Town, Rawl Lewis, selected as one of the four bowlers, did not bowl even one ball in the West Indies defeat against South Africa in the fifth one-day international.

Source :: The Jamaica Gleaner (https://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/)