Mental toughness behind Tallawahs championship

Tough mental aptitudes as well as world-class players were some of the main exponents identified by Jamaica Tallawahs coach Paul Nixon as the main reasons they were able to capture their second title at the end of the fourth staging of the HERO Motocorp Caribbean Premier League Twenty20 recently.

Nixon, a former England international, made the remarks in light of how the Tallawahs rebounded from three late-season defeats to rise to the top.

''We knew we would have had blimps, but it was about remaining consistent in our behaviours, our standards, and our processes,'' stated Nixon.

''One can easily make mistakes by batting a ball down somebody's throat or bowl a bad ball. But it was about not getting carried away. It was about keeping calm, breathing in pressure situations, taking time out during a game to clear one's head for some good decision making. That's exactly what these lads did, and I am very proud.''

Leaders of the six-team tournament for much of the preliminary round, Jamaica lost their final two first-round matches to eventual semi-finalists St Lucia Zouks in Florida before also going down to Guyana Amazon Warriors in the first play-off the semi-finals.

REBOUND

They, however, mainly on the back of a shot-filled century from leading all-rounder AndrE Russell, were able to rebound and defeat dethroned champions Trinbago Knight Riders in the second semi-final encounter, which sent them into the final.

They then on the back of a man-of-the-match performance from Pakistani leg-spinner, Imad Wasim, and a smashing half-century from captain Chris Gayle overcame the challenge of the Amazon Warriors in the tournament decider.

Nixon also credited Sri Lankan Kumar Sangakarra and South African Dayle Steyn for setting high standards.

Nixon also expressed pleasure at the talent of regional players as exhibited throughout the tournament, and believes that in time to come this will augur well for West Indies cricket.