By Neto Baptiste
National and Leeward Islands cricketer, Devon Thomas, said that although it was not surprising he was not picked up in the recent Caribbean Premier League (CPL) Draft, he hoped for an opportunity to improve upon what he said was a lukewarm tournament last year with the St Kitts & Nevis Patriots.
In an interview with Observer, Thomas, who now resides in Jamaica, acknowledged he did not have an entirely impressive season with the bat last year, adding he must up his game if his desire is to return to the highest format of the game.
“Playing for St Kitts, I have been the second leading scorer over the last few years, so I was a bit disappointed but at the end of the day, it’s a franchise and they are coming with a different plan and different owners. Also, last year I got a few starts but I didn’t capitalise on those starts so I have to look back on myself and say I let myself down as well,” he said.
“As I’ve said, I have to be more consistent and I wasn’t consistent enough. I did okay in the Super50 but I had a poor run in the Four Day so I have to try and fix those things and have better consistent performances going forward,” he added.
The 30-year-old Thomas was not retained by the Patriots in June this year and later announced he would enter the player draft in hopes of being picked up by one of the other franchises.
He said his focus has since turned to the Leeward Islands Hurricanes and have started preparations for the forthcoming season later this year.
“They [LICB] have given us a programme to work with and I think that it was just last week Friday we did a fitness test, a yoyo test, so I’ve been keeping in good shape. I am just lacking of hitting balls, that’s the only thing. I was training with the Jamaica team but after the new franchise team was announced they said only the franchise guys [players] were allowed, so I had to slack off,” the player said.
In the 2019 CPL, Thomas amassed 180 runs in 11 innings with a highest of 71. The player, in 2018, made 222 in eight innings with a best of 58 runs.
The 2020 instalment of the Hero Caribbean Premier League is slated to take place between August 19 and September 26.