Who is Shamar Joseph, the Guyanese quickie who quickly won every cricket lover’s heart?

https://open.spotify.com/episode/6tkJtq97TPsHPjsZCxBg7n — (British Sports Journalist on Jofra Archer’s comeback, Jos Buttler future, and Rohit Sharma’s captaincy) -Crikees (The cricket Podcast)

I always believe that sports stories are something from which anybody can draw inspiration because it is not reel, they are real. It is fair to say that there is a string of stories that can inspire us, and from all of these stories, I picked one — the story of Shamar Joseph. It’s a story of belief, a story of pain, a story of a fighter. This young fast bowler suddenly became the poster boy of West Indies cricket, giving us hope that the team, which is going through a rough patch, has someone who can do wonders for them.

A boy who grew up watching Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh, Shamar was born in Guyana, and until his late teens, he didn’t get any opportunities to play with a leather ball. Now, all these stories we hear about how some star players were born from nothing to everything, so what is new in this? He was working as a labourer in the logging industry with his siblings to earn bread for his family, coming from a humble background where the situation is hand-to-mouth. Still, he dreamed big to achieve everything — guts, dare to dream, and fighting with challenges — that’s what made Shamar Joseph.

But how did this all start? Like any other West Indian, one thing was always glued to him, and that is cricket. He grew up watching Courtney Walsh, Curtly Ambrose, the quickers of the Caribbean team of the mid-’80s. But just watching cricket doesn’t make you a cricketer; to be one of them, you have to play. To play, you need a cricket structure that wasn’t there in Guyana. And above all of this, to do anything, you need money. As I mentioned, Shamar’s situation was hand-to-mouth, so he relocated for better job opportunities and landed as a security guard at Amalgamated Security Services in Scotiabank.

Well, not every story starts with a privileged beginning; some stories need to wait to complete the full circle where, at last, you get a sense of belonging, a sense of privilege, a sense of pride. Let’s fast forward the movie and jump to Australia on his debut. But before we jump, a few men in his life deserve equal respect for supporting Shamar in this tough journey:

Romario Shepherd — Yes, this Guyanese cricketer who also played for the West Indies actually gave Shamar a break he deserved. Shepherd introduced Joseph to the Guyana cricket team, and from there, he met Esuan Crandon, another Guyanese cricketer and the current head coach.

Damion Vantull — Guyanese cricketer turned businessman who assured him with financial backup.

Trishana Joseph, his fiancée, took care of everything when he decided to leave a job and play cricket.

Life is not just about you; it’s about all the people whom you meet and all those people who come as angels to you.

Now let’s jump to his debut story in the Australia vs. West Indies 1st Test match, West Indies had never won any game against Australia after 1997 in Australia.

For many cricketers, the dream of playing test cricket for their country persists, and Shamar’s story is no different. However, what sets him apart is his approach. His approach from the first ball which we saw that first ball cleaned out Australian star batter Steve Smith. It was the first sound marking Shamar Joseph’s entry. Although the game didn’t go well for the West Indies, Shamar ended up taking 5 wickets in the first innings of his debut match.

But things are going to change at the Gabba, some events are meant to happen.

What an amazing Test match we witnessed at the Gabba, Australia! After 27 years of waiting, West Indies came up with all guns blazing in the first innings. After struggling in the batting, as they were 64/5 at one stage, they managed to make 311 runs in the first innings. It was the first glimpse we saw of the new West Indies team — the fashionable comeback. Always smiling, playing quality cricket; that’s what we know about West Indies cricket. And there, again, coming back on track, West Indies have beaten Australia at the Gabba after a long wait of 27 years. It was a hair-raising moment for many cricket viewers when they saw a player who got injured in the first innings by a yorker or, say, a toe-crusher ball from Mitchell Starc.

Then, coming in the second innings and clinching 7 wickets was a once-in-a-lifetime moment that he produced. While trailing by 311 runs, Australia also collapsed at one stage — they were 54/5. Then, Alex Carey and Pat Cummins again restarted the Aussie engine. But one surprising action came when Cummins declared Australia’s inning at the score of 289 runs, at the time they were behind by 22 runs. When West Indies came to bat, they slowly and gradually lost wickets in quick succession. However, they managed to make 193 runs, which gave them a fighting total — a total they could defend. And they did it in the West Indies fashion. Initially, it was Alzarri Joseph and Justin Greaves who gave a breakthrough to the West Indies by taking the wickets of Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne. But then, a thunder called Shamar came, who destroyed the Australians with his quick deliveries. He was not just a quick bowler; he bowled in the correct line and length as well. Shamar gave a lesson on how to defend small totals. When Australia was 207 for 9 and just 8 runs behind, Shamar’s fiery delivery destroyed Hazlewood’s defense. The victory run he took was amazing to see smash them and hopefully, he will get wings soon in his international career.