Dear Editor,
My first observation about the Guyana Amazon Warriors is that they prefer to bowl first, even on docile pitches and would have done so in all three of their previous matches. It was also evident in last year’s tournament that they bowled first in a high percentage of games. This ploy is heavily reliant on the bowlers limiting the opposition to a meagre score. I am not convinced though that this is an effective strategy especially in this format of the game where chasing targets is never easy, given the enormous pressure at times. What if the bowlers don’t get it right, or what if the team has to bat first in the latter stages, but is not sufficiently prepared to do so based on their preference for bowling first?
The strength of the Amazon Warriors indeed is in their bowling department, and I believe that if the team placed a decent score on the board, it would be better for the bowlers to defend. Additionally, the batting, whilst cohesive does not have the firepower at the end, and this is the crucial factor that caused them to lose against the Jamaican Talawahs. Most of the pitches in the Caribbean can be described as batting friendly, and the option therefore should be to bat first and extract whatever solidity is there before it deteriorates. I thought that the batsmen were too casual in chasing runs and when the going got tougher, they were still stuck in first gear.
It seems therefore that they lack feral instincts, ironically just what their team’s name should represent. Certainly they need to be more expressive and openly show that they have a team plan for the first ten overs, including a power play as well for the last five overs. They did not display much urgency in the last game, as the batsmen were playing each ball on its merit without taking risks. Risks are what 20/20 cricket is all about, and the mood certainly has to change if the Amazon Warriors want the title.
The batting line-up is not at all exciting since the top five have mostly Test-like batsmen, except for Lendl Simmons who also seems the shadow of himself in the IPL. I would therefore place the explosive Christopher Barnwell higher in the order to complement the stroke-makers and have Mohamed Hafeez relegated. I recall as well that captain Denesh Ramdin during his post-match comments expressed his inclination for the fielding to improve, and indeed it is an area that needs attention. Then there is no better person than Coach Roger Harper to instil such skill in the team, since it is a key element in the game that can determine the outcome. Generally though, the Amazon Warriors have the collective talent to achieve CPL glory but they need to quickly assert their feral instincts, befitting 20/20 cricket and the Warriors themselves.
Yours faithfully,
Elroy Stephney
