National Under-19 all rounder Jonathan Foo says he is focused on making Guyana’s senior limited-overs team for this year’s tournament when he spoke to Stabroek Sport during the rain intervals on the final day of the GCB/GTM Under-19 match Demerara match.
“I am working towards making the team this year. But first I am looking to score heavily in the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) regional Under-19 tournament in Jamaica for Guyana, to force my way into the Regional under-19 team,” he said.
The soft-spoken 18-year-old who was born to Mary Chinsammy and Deryck Foo on September 11, 1990 and is the nephew of Michael and Andy Chinsammy, two former national Under-19 spinners, was recently crowned the MVP at the just-concluded GCB/GTM Under-19 Inter-county three day tournament. Foo scored 157 runs, including the lone century, 131 against Demerara, while he took 23 wickets with a match haul of 15-94 against Essequibo as defending champions Berbice easily retained the title.
He said prior to the start of this tournament several persons had referred to him as an under-achiever in youth cricket. “So I set myself a goal, which was to top the batting and bowling aggregates, whilst at the same time, ensured that Berbice retain the title. That was achieved, so my next aim is to do my best for Guyana in the youth championships, where I intend to force my way into the West Indies Under-19 team,” he said.
A former table-tennis player, Foo started playing the gentleman’s game at the age of 10, after watching his two uncles perform exceedingly well for their team Albion Sports Club.
He has never looked back since. “My two uncles would take me to their game when they were playing and after several trips to such matches, I decided to give up table tennis (not fully as I do play in my spare time) and start playing cricket,” he said. The decision paid off as Foo was soon chosen for the Guyana Under-15 team which competed in the WICB tournament in St Vincent in 2003 at the age of 12.
However, “I must say that I struggled with the ball as I only took six wickets in five matches,” he said, adding that “Many persons told me not to worry about that, as there were more tournaments and one day I would shine for Guyana. But I used my first tournament as an example and when I went to Trinidad the next year, I got eight wickets, followed by another eight in the same tournament in Antigua the following year.”
The youngster then made the national Under-17 team the following year as a right-arm leg spinner, but only took up batting when he was selected to the championship winning the 2007 national under-19 team, under the captaincy of Steven Jacobs. Though Foo had not been considered a batsman before, he scored an unbeaten 217 for his club in an Under-15 semi-final against Rose Hall, Canje, a tournament his club went onto win, followed by his 187 which he rates as his best against Scottsburg United in a three-day fixture.
“To me, the 217 was an achievement, being that it was my first double century in my career, but the 187 was my best innings to date in terms of concentration and patience. I have never batted with such patience before, especially going to the wicket with the team being 98-4 having just returned from an Under-15 tour with the national team,” he said. “I had a top score of 25 batting at number three in the limited overs version of the Under-19 tournament in St Kitts in 2007, with 15 being my best in the three-day tournament. But when I came back home, I decided to pay some attention to my batting with the aim of being the next all rounder for Guyana at the senior level,” he added.
Like every young cricketer in the Region, Foo’s dream is to don the maroon cap of the West Indies. “When Chattas (Sewnarine Chattergoon) my club mate returned from his first tour with the West Indies, I was happy for him and I told myself that one day I want to wear the maroon cap of the senior team and having set myself goals before and achieved them, I know I can do the same with this one,” he said.
Foo said too he admires England’s Kevin Pietersen for his aggressiveness towards the opposition bowlers and hopes to meet him one day. He also said he likes “his batting attitude, which is to my mind, full aggressiveness mixed with patience towards the opposition bowlers and I would love to meet him one day.”
Foo also told this newspaper that he is grateful to his parents, uncles, Manager of Albion Sports Club cricket team Vemen Walter and national Under-19 coach and senior team selector Hubern Evans for their time and dedication as he honed his craft.