By Rajiv Bisnauth

THE exclusion of explosive middle-order batsman Jonathan Foo from Guyana Jaguars squad for the upcoming Regional Super50 Cup has provoked the ire of members of the Albion Community Centre Cricket Club (ACCCC).
The club condemned it as “total nonsense” and demanded an explanation for the non-selection of the right-handed batsman.
Foo was not among the 15 players selected for the tournament, which will be played under strict protocols due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The tournament is billed for February 7 to 27 in Antigua and Barbuda.

Speaking on behalf of the club a day after Cricket Guyana Incorporated (CGI) released the names of the selected players, president Vemen Walters said the club was particularly puzzled how Foo did not make the final cut.
Foo, who made his national debut in the 2010 Caribbean Twenty20 and played a leading role in the final of that tournament, scoring 42 from 17 balls to help Guyana to victory over Barbados, scored 334 runs from eight games at an average of 55.66 with the highest of 97 not out against the semi-final against Trinidad and Tobago in the last Super50 tournament.
“The Albion Community Centre Cricket Club would like to condemn in the strongest possible terms the treatment being handed out to Foo and would like CGI to give a reason for his non-selection,” Walters explained.

According to the long-serving executive, Foo should have been an automatic selection based on his performances during the last Super50 tournament.
“Without any doubt, the 30-year-old Foo should have been an automatic choice in the team. The club wishes to remind the selectors and the administrators of Guyana’s cricket that selections must be based purely on merit and performance and Foo has undoubtedly fulfilled such criteria as his performance has been remarkable in the last Super50 tournament.
“This is unbelievable and as such, the club is calling on the Guyana Jaguars’ selectors and by extension CGI to provide an explanation to the cricketing public as to the reason for Foo’s non-selection,” Walters stressed.

The Jaguars would be led by Leon Johnson, with West Indies player Shimron Hetmyer his deputy. The experienced left-handed batsman Assad Fudadin has returned to the Guyana Jaguars squad while all-rounders Keemo Paul and Sherfane Rutherford miss out.
Paul will sit out of the tournament in order to facilitate adequate recovery from an injury, whereas, Sherfane Rutherford, who was considered for selection, has opted to play T/10 and T/20 cricket in Bangladesh and Pakistan, respectively
The squad: Chandrapaul Hemraj, Trevon Griffith, Christopher Barnwell, Leon Johnson (captain), Shimron Hetmyer (vice-captain), Assad Fudadin, Keon Joseph, Romario Shepherd, Kevin Sinclair, Ramaal Lewis, Nial Smith, Gudakesh Motie, Anthony Bramble, Akshaya Persaud and Tevin Imlach.