Emmanuel Stewart gets exposure ‘down under’

One of the brightest batting talents in the Windward Islands — Grenadian Emmanuel Stewart is gaining more regional attention.{{more}}

The 14-year-old right-handed batsman and wicketkeeper from the Grenada dependency of Carriacou is part of an Invitational Under-16 team from Trinidad and Tobago, which is touring Australia for three weeks.

The tour, which ends this Friday, December 6, was organised by All Sport Promotions of Trinidad and Tobago. Another Grenadian, Darel Cyrus also made the trip “down under”.

In April of this year, Stewart led Grenada from the front to second place in the Windward Islands Under-15 Tournament held here in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

Such was his impact on the tournament that he was the most talked about player and won several awards. He scored the most runs – 349, at an average of 69.5. In his aggregate, Stewart notched up four half centuries – 87, 81, 66 and 54. Stewart was also voted the Most Valuable Player for Grenada, as well as the Tournament’s MVP and the Best Wicketkeeper.

He was one of four Grenadians selected on the Windward Islands team.

The young man then led the Windwards to the runner-up position to Trinidad and Tobago in the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) Regional U-15 tournament in Jamaica.

On the tour to Australia, eventhough Stewart did not shine as expected, it meant that his talents are being recognized by others.

It was the visiting team’s Amir Jangoo who was named tournament MVP for his consistency throughout. Bryan Boodram picked up an award as the only bowler in the tournament with a five-wicket haul. Jordan Warner was hailed for his two centuries.

Coach Kenny Benjamin won the Spirit of the Games award, and team captain Kirstan Kallicharan was named MVP for the T20 series played before the main event.

Trinidad and Tobago won the Don Bradman series.

Apart from the competitive matches, the Trinidad and Tobago Invitational had a three-day visit to Adelaide and a friendly match against South Australia’s Under-17s and a day at the Adelaide Oval as guests of the South Australia Cricket Association.(RT)