Shepherd has got to think off-stump line, says veteran cricket commentator

By Brandon Corlette in St Lucia

Not every day you will shine, and for Romario Shepherd, this has been one of those dim seasons. Shepherd, who finished as one of the leading wicket-takers in the 2021 Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL), has been under pressure in the 2022 season thus far.

However, he will be aiming to bounce back. According to veteran cricket commentator Joseph “Reds” Perreira, Shepherd has to focus on an off-stump line.
“Shepherd has been having problems since the IPL. I am not sure what the coaches have done, because it is not just the physical, it is the mental. I have a thing for (Josh) Hazlewood and Glenn McGrath, but let’s use Hazlewood: he’s current. Off-stump line, off-stump line, and Shepherd has got to think off-stump. When that arm gets wider, the control gets difficult, and more he has bad games at the death is the more the confidence is going to go. And that is why Hetmyer should have said, let me judge today, and Smith was the better bowler,” Perreira said during an invited comment.

After that four-wicket defeat against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots, Warriors will be up against St Lucia Kings today, Saturday, September 10 from 19:00h Eastern Caribbean time. Based on all the talk in St Lucia, a large crowd is expected for this game.
“Even before they (Amazon Warriors) get to Trinidad, they have to win. It is vital that the Warriors make the semi-final because the Guyana public is concerned. It is great for Guyana to be hosting the CPL, it does a lot for the economy, and does a lot for tourism and for cricket, but we have got to make sure that we are ready to play the right kind of cricket consistently to make the semi-finals,” the veteran commentator and author said.
Analysing the Warriors team, Perreira said the team are lacking that X-factor opener and fast bowler. “If you start with the batting, there was a lot of poor executions to rank bad balls, that should have been boundary balls. Other batsmen from other countries are taking full advantage of those bad balls, so when you get up to the 10th over, you are eyeing 80-90. Warriors are averaging less.”
Perreira said that the Warriors have scored productively in the last 10 overs, but a much better tempo is needed early. On the openers Paul Stirling and Chandrapaul Hemraj, Reds said: “Stirling had good runs in the Hundred, but where is that form gone? Take an example of Fletcher for the Patriots, he really gives them that punch, the same thing Mayers is doing, and when Hemraj gets into the 40, he has got to bat on.”
He also noted that an overseas fast bowler would have been good for the Warriors. “We are missing an overseas fast bowler, with some experience, an x-factor fast bowler.”