FROM THE BOUNDARY by Tony Becca 
AFTER TWO rounds in the Busta cricket series, Jamaica are in joint second-place and although they would have preferred to be in first place, all alone, they should be fairly happy.
Judging from the commentary during the game, and from the interviews with captain Robert Samuels and coach Robert Haynes afterwards, Jamaica must have played badly to come away with only three points from the drawn match against the Windward Islands.
That was not the case against Guyana, however - certainly not for the last three days.
Apart from the first day when their bowlers were too defensive and therefore ordinary, apart from the disappointment of Leon Garrick's dismissal on the second afternoon when he gave away his wicket after batting so brilliantly, and apart from when Ryan Cunningham dropped an easy catch at mid-off, the Jamaicans were on the ball.
On the second morning, with Guyana resuming on 225 for three, the bowlers, led by medium-pacer Laurie Williams who got the ball to cut both ways off the seam from a lively pace, bowled them back into the game.
Later that day, Garrick, in all his glory, scored a century before losing his cool; on the third morning, with Jamaica resuming on 177 for four and still 91 runs away from first innings points.
Samuels and Mario Ventura, in what appeared a well-orchestrated plan, saw them to safety, Ventura and Williams handed them a good lead; and towards the end of the day, Darrell Powell, bowling really fast, and Williams reduced Guyana to 11 for two and opened the gate for Jamaica.
On the final day, Williams set up the victory with two early wickets and although Guyana made it more difficult than it appeared at lunch when they were reeling at 91 for seven, Garrick, the man of the match, was again in form and sealed it with another lovely batting performance.
Although Guyana's batting is not the best, their bowling, which included pacers Reon King and Kevin Darlington, spinners Mahendra Nagamootoo and Neil McGarrell is quite good, and it was a good victory for Jamaica.
Looking at the bowling of Darrell Powell and the batting of Samuels and Ventura, it was, however, more than a good victory. It was also a performance that could really signal the start of another winning season for Jamaica.
Powell's pace was exciting and he was aggressive. Whenever he bowled on the stumps, the batsmen were uncomfortable, and the promise is that if he is allowed to express himself, there will be many more uncomfortable batsmen around the region before the tournament is over.
As far as Samuels and Ventura are concerned, their defensive batting in the second innings was probably what saved the team in the Windward Islands, and admitting that most times there are more than one road to a destination, and more than one way to skin a cat, their defensive batting on the third morning was probably what handed Jamaica the lead and set the stage for the substantial lead.
Generally speaking, however, their batting has been too defensive in recent times - so defensive that it gives the impression that they are afraid, that they, particularly Samuels who was so exciting as a youngster, no longer possess the confidence to back their skill and to attack bowlers.
Minutes before noon on Sunday, however, five minutes before lunch, Samuels opened up, caned Guyana's bowlers, and smashed two sixes and seven of his nine boundaries before he was cut down by a good delivery 45 minutes after the break.
By then Jamaica had won the lead, and with Williams striking the ball nicely, Ventura, probably remembering that he too can strike the ball, shifted gear and thrilled the gathering with some wonderful strokes - including a scintillating front-foot square-drive off pacer King when Guyana took the second new ball.
Apart from the result, match number two was a good one for Jamaica. It was also a good one for bowlers Williams and Darrell Powell, for batsmen Garrick, Samuels and Ventura, and lest it be forgotten, for Ricardo Powell, the fielder, whose catches in the slips included one truly brilliant one.
