There was an outpouring of support and slew of congratulations for local cricketer Shamar Joseph yesterday on the heels of his stellar West Indies Test cricket debut against Australia, with Guyana’s President Irfaan Ali saying his country and the region could not be prouder of him.
Joseph’s performance, which saw him take seven wickets for 68 runs in the second Test against Australia, resulted in the West Indies winning their first Test match in 27 years in Australia. This has brought joy to the Caribbean and Guyana, but especially the residents of the small Canje River village Baracara from which he hails.
It was Joseph’s second Test. What made the victory even sweeter was that he played with an injured, bloodied toe and as he took out the stumps of Josh Hazelwood , the young 24-year-old went running around the ground with his teammates behind him, some climbing on his back in jubilation.
The incredible victory brought tears to the young team members, most of whom were written off as being inexperienced and no match for the Australian side, the best in test cricket. In addition, former players Brian Lara and Carl Hooper, who were both commentating on the match at the time, could not help but cry tears of joy.
Joseph’s family said that they were most proud and “overwhelmed” with joy at the performance of the young 24-year-old, who, up to last year, was working as a security guard to help make ends meet for his family.
“We are happy for his achievements. Our mother is in tears. Even though he was a security guard, he spent most of his time playing cricket. We had a group call with him this morning and everybody was so happy. We had our days of struggling, but he made it and we are so proud of him,” his sister Sarafina Joseph told the Stabroek News via mobile phone from Berbice.
President Ali, himself a former club cricketer and a passionate fan, was also overjoyed with the performance. He said that Joseph’s story is a motivating one, not only for aspiring sport players but for every individual aspiring for greatness and positive contributions to society.
“Shamar has extraordinary talent. From the first day I saw him, I knew he had all the raw, technical qualities to be not only one of the greatest fast bowlers but also a useful batsman. This is a dream start of a career! But as I told him, his eyes must always be on the prize,” the President told Stabroek News while travelling back home from a state visit to Ghana, where he had also received an award.
In his conversations with Joseph, Ali said, he talked with him about the legacy he wanted to leave and how that required “working every day to be the greatest fast bowler in West Indies cricket” through humility and dedication.
“For sure he has the ability,” the President enthusiastically expressed.
“I join all of Guyana and the West Indies in celebrating Shamar. We are extremely proud of you. I wish him continued success and with commitment and discipline he can rewrite a lot of cricketing history in fast bowling,” Ali said.
“As chair of Caricom,” he continued, “I can say that, collectively, we are proud of the unified effort of the West Indies team and wish them continued success. Surely they have proven that we have the ability to be the greatest again. Let us build from here with determination and discipline.”
The Opposition also was in deep praise for Joseph, pointing to his discipline and perseverance.
“We also wish to acknowledge the outstanding and phenomenal efforts of our own Mr Shamar Joseph, a Guyanese with a humble background from the village of Baracara, deep in the Canjie Creek. We share in the great joy and pride of his family and fellow villagers. Shamar, on his debut test, achieved 5-94, He was able to surpass that performance with 7-68, while inspiring renewed hope for the future of Test cricket and more specifically West Indies fast bowling cricket prowess,” a congratulatory message to the West Indies from the Office of the Opposition Leader yesterday stated.
“His debut performance promises even greater achievements. The Office of the Leader of Opposition and the PNCR are heartened by Shamar`s dedication, hard work, discipline and his remarkable ability to overcome problems and persevere in very trying circumstances. It is our sincere hope that all Guyanese recognise what he has done for us all and show the respect and provide the support that is needed to ensure he continues on this path to success. Let us hail his top-class accomplishment and be inspired by the success of our talented and spirited youth from Baracara,” it added.
Former West Indies captain and friend of Joseph, Ramnaresh Sarwan also pointed to Joseph’s potential as he extended best wishes. His advice to Joseph is not to allow the fame to influence him to change his current dedicative schedule or humility. “I am overjoyed to see this young fast bowler out of Guyana with such a stellar performance, and more than happy that it is Shamar. Being Guyanese and also a former West Indies cricketer, I can’t explain the euphoric feelings when he performed not only today but at his debut,” Sarwan said.
“In our personal interactions we only played tape ball, but you could have seen his potential. When I met him, he was one of the most humble and passionately driven persons I met. My advice to him is simple: stay humble, keep your feet grounded, continue the hard work and know that I wish you growth from strength to strength,” he added.
Joseph was born in the remote Canje, Berbice River village of Baracara, which has a population of only about 350 people. He lived there for most of his life before moving to New Amsterdam, Berbice, where getting home entailed using a small speed boat, that could take sometimes up to eight hours.
Sarafina Joseph told this newspaper a story of “an always ambitious” little brother, who loved cricket from childhood. She said that her brother’s preoccupation with cricket would see him spending hours using awaras (a small fruit from a prickly palm tree) and lemons to practise his bowling skills while he used crude bats made from tree branches.
Joseph’s sister was emotional for most of the conversation and she related that similar feelings were felt by their immediate family who learned of her brother’s performance yesterday.
She recounted that Shemar started his journey as a cricketer as part of a cricket club called ‘The Young Strikers’ but never got a break to play county cricket.
And while the family is overwhelmed with joy, they are not surprised at Joseph’s performance. His sister said that her brother’s determination was such that once he put his hands on any job, he mastered it. However, yesterday’s game came as a surprise because they did not know that Joseph would be playing. His sister said that the night before he had told them that he had an injured toe which was affecting him. Because their village, which has been without power until a few years ago when it received solar panels, is so remote that there is no live news or internet feeds, the family did not know that Joseph had played.
Sarafina Joseph recounted that she was attending Women’s Ministry at church early yesterday morning when received the exciting news.
