Sky’s the limit for Brandon King, says former Coach Bennett
FORMER Jamaica cricket Coach Junior Bennett says “the sky is the limit” for Brandon King, after the batsman was selected in the West Indies One-day International (ODI) and Twenty20 (T20) squads to face Afghanistan in India next month.
King, 24, and yet to play for the West Indies senior team, was a standout player for Jamaica Scorpions during the last four-day season, scoring over 600 runs and averaging close to 50.
The stylish Jamaican batsman, who represented the West Indies Under-19s during the 2014 ICC Youth World Cup, starred for beaten finalists Guyana Amazon Warriors in the just-ended Caribbean Premier League (CPL) T20 competition. He led the runs chart with a tally of 496, while boasting an average of 55.
“We’re extremely happy about King’s selection for white ball cricket for the West Indies,” Bennett, chairman of selectors for the Scorpions franchise, told the Jamaica Observer yesterday.
“He had a very good CPL tournament, and looking back on how he was preparing ahead of the tournament, we all knew based on that preparation that he would have done well. Once he continues that way the sky is the limit for him,” he explained.
Bennett, a highly successful national senior team coach, was at the helm when King made his regional four-day debut for Jamaica Scorpions against Trinidad and Tobago Red Force at Sabina Park in February 2015.
The Scorpions lost but King, batting at number six, had tongues wagging with an authoritative and elegant 77-ball 71 in the first innings. He made a run-a-ball 20 in the second innings.
“He is a very talented player who showed ability before he even made his first class debut against Trinidad and Tobago. He made 70-odd in that game and you could see it from then how talented he was. I think it’s just a matter of time before he is selected to play Test cricket,” Bennett said.
King averages 35.05 in 28 first class matches, with his highest score being 194. In 30 T20s, he averages 36.33, with a strike rate of 136.98. His top score of 132 not out in the shortest format came during the recent CPL campaign.
From November 5 to December 1, West Indies are slated to play a one-off Test, three ODIS, and three T20IS against the Afghans.