Windies middle-order batsman, Shimron Hetmyer, despite not having the most consistent time with the bat since his international debut, has certainly turned some heads and made people, including former regional team batsman, Dwayne Smith.
“From the first time I saw him I thought he had tremendous talent,” said Smith, a former Windies and Barbados opening batsman.
Hetmyer, already ranked the number 51 Test batsman in the world, made his debut for the Windies at Sabina Park in Kingston against Pakistan in 2017.
Since then he has averaged just 29.70 with a highest score of 93 in Tests.
His average is higher in ODIs at 37,9 with a highest score of 127, but still, the lefthander is not anywhere the immense talent he shows.
In fact, in T20Is, where his attacking personality should flourish most, Hetmyer only manages and average of 14 and a half.
Smith believes very minor adjustments are needed for those averages to go up.
“He just needs to be wiser about his shot selection, especially in Test cricket,” said Smith.
That aggression, Smith seems to suggest, is something that has been missing from West Indian cricket and he, for one, would like to see more of it.
“I like the aggressive, attacking way he goes about his cricket. This is so West Indian and we can’t take the West Indian out of our West Indians. We just need to keep them going and give them the right backing and stuff like that,” he said.
With those ingredients, Smith believes Hetmyer will be one of the best players in a Windies jersey for years to come.
“He’s someone, who for me, is going to be one of the top cricketers for the West Indies,” said Smith. (SportsMax)
