If attention were being paid to the cricket of Guyanese batting sensation Shimron Hetmyer in recent times, it would have been observed that he was out of form. He played in all three formats of the recent series involving the West Indies and India, and his showing there could best be described as pedestrian.
Shimron Hetmyer
However, Hetmyer showed up at “the biggest party in sport”, the 2019 edition of the Hero Caribbean Premier League, and in only his second outing, returned to form with a match winning 70* for the Guyana Amazon Warriors (GAW) against the St Kitts & Nevis Patriots in a match played last Saturday evening at the National Stadium at Providence, EBD.
“Finally! I just tried as much as possible to do my best and correct my wrongs, and keep working hard in the nets on my batting,” Hetmyer disclosed after his efforts had earned him the ‘player of the match’ award in that game.
The Berbician always gets optimum support at the GAW home fortress — the Guyana National Stadium at Providence — and he declared it is always great for him when playing at home.
The GAW successfully chased 154 runs for victory in their second match of this tournament, and Hetmyer said that key for the batsmen was application. “I think it’s just applying yourself, and putting away the bad balls while rotating the strike. We just try to hit the ball around and capitalise as much in the ‘power play’, and that came off well for us”, he explained.
Hetmyer, who scored 26 runs from 28 deliveries in Saturday’s game, and hit a consolation boundary in the opening match against the St Lucia Zouks, played with more assurance during his second match of the 2019 Hero CPL. The left-hander played some elegant shots on the off-side, and had seven fours to his name. Appointed batting director by Team Manager Omar Khan, Hetmyer also smashed three sixes in compiling his third CPL half-century.
His most productive three balls in that Saturday innings came against Alzarri Joseph in the 14th over, when he hit two consecutive fours followed by a six, to dent Joseph’s confidence.
Speaking about that battle between ‘these young guns’, who happen to be friends, Hetmyer said rivalry is always sparked whenever he plays against Joseph.
Having recorded an 8-wicket win in their second match, in a GAW effort that was more polished than their opening match, Hetmyer said the team had probably ticked all the boxes heading into the remainder of the tournament, but there always would be room for improvement.
Hetmyer has thus far scored 96 runs in two innings in the 2019 Hero CPL, and is on the verge of achieving more with the campaign ongoing. His 2018 season was a dream one in which he scored 440 runs, including one century and two half-centuries. (Brandon Corlette)
