By Tony Becca - On The Boundary THE BUSTA International Shield final between Jamaica and Guyana promises to be a treat for cricket fans, and with a nice blend of talented and experienced players on either side, it should be. In fact, it should be a sumptuous one, a fitting climax to the Busta Series.
It should be a fitting climax for the simple reason that the Busta Series was a success because of some splendid individual performances by some young, really young, players and from some experienced older players.
The young players impressed not only with their talent but also with a level of skill, numbered among them were batsmen Dwayne Bravo and Lendl Simmons of Trinidad and Tobago, pacer Tino Best of Barbados, batsman Sewnarine Chattergoon of Guyana, and especially remembering Bravo's bold and confident innings at Alpart, and Simmons' catch in the semi-final at Sabina Park, there is no question that the majority of them are good and that a few of them seem destined to wear the maroon cap of the West Indies - and with distinction at that.
The experienced older players impressed with their skill, and in doing so, in playing their part in making some of the contests close and exciting, they proved that age is just a number.
Among those who exhibited the kind of skill that allowed them to stand guard when the less experienced were found wanting and were falling, and the kind of skill that allowed them to pull their team out of trouble when others could not, were wicketkeeper Junior Murray and batsmen Stuart Williams and Robert Samuels.
At age 34, Murray, who took the most catches, 26, and made one stumping, ticked off four centuries while scoring 642 runs at an average of 53.50; at age 32, Williams chalked up three centuries, including a topscore 252 not out, while scoring 974 runs at an average of 97.40; and at age 31, Samuels, aided by his first century in a long time, scored 477 runs at an average of 53.
What is even more important than their statistics, however, is the important innings each one played for his team.
Samuels, for example, played some crucial innings for Jamaica. Apart from his dashing 106 not out against the over-matched West Indies "B", and his 38-ball grand-stand finish against Trinidad and Tobago in the semi-finals, Samuels stepped into the breach with a fighting 40 to help save the game against the Windward Islands, a solid 69 against Guyana, and when the struggle was on for supremacy, with a lovely 51 against the Leeward Islands.
Mario Ventura is not yet 30. In West Indies cricket, however, he is considered an old hand, and he too stood his ground when others did not, or because of their inexperience and lack of skill, could not.
In Jamaica's first match, it was Ventura's determined, undefeated 55 along with Samuels' 40 that stood between Jamaica and defeat, and before his unfortunate injury against Trinidad and Tobago he scored a lovely 72 not out against Guyana.
The best of Ventura, however, was at Kaiser when he saved Jamaica from embarrassment, steadied them, and set the stage for a shot at victory.
With Jamaica reeling at 85 for six on the first day against the Leeward Islands, the solid left-hander, who was averaging 80 when he was cut down, scored 52 not out as one like Laurie Williams, another veteran, took the attack to the bowlers.
They were not the only stars up to the semi-finals, but Murray, Williams, and Samuels, plus Ventura, contributed significantly to the Busta Series, they produced when the chips were down, in doing so they must have had some influence on the younger players, and that must be good for West Indies cricket.
Youth and experience, talent and skill, is usually a wonderful blend - a winning combination.
