Campbell career over?
Commentator calls for compassion for banned cricketer
Published:Sunday | October 9, 2022 | 12:11 AMOrane Buchanan - Staff Reporter
EXPERIENCED REGIONAL cricket commentator Joseph ‘Reds’ Perreira believes the career of Jamaica and West Indies opening batsman John Campbell could be in jeopardy, following news that the 29-year-old opener has been slapped with a four-year ban.
“It depends on if he even stands a chance, based on legal advice. If he appeals, and then loses, then we accept that his cricket career may be at the end. He’s not a young batsman, but life doesn’t end there for him. He can pursue other areas of interest, but before that, we have to look at the appeal process,” said Perreira.
Campbell, who made his debut for the regional team back in 2019, has played 20 Test matches, six One-Day Internationals and two T20 Internationals.
According to the Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission (JADCO), the left-hander refused to provide a blood sample at his home in Kingston, Jamaica, back in April this year. This resulted in him being charged with evading, refusing or failing to submit to sample collection.
Perreira feels during this time, all the support should be thrown around Campbell from his local cricket board and by the region.
“The local fraternity, the fraternity in the Caribbean, his fans need to support him, because it’s vital at this stage. He must not be seen as a pariah, a judgement has been made, but there’s an appeal process and people should not rush to their judgement.
Campbell has scored three half-centuries in Test cricket at an average of 26.11. With tragedy comes opportunity and according to Perreira, other batsmen around the Caribbean have a chance to fill the void.
“This gives room for potential openers like Chandrapaul Hemraj or Jeremy Solozano. You might not necessarily want to go for a traditional opening batsman, so maybe Brandon King could switch from the white-ball to red-ball format. You could throw in Evin Lewis, so it’s an area where the West Indies selectors will have to look carefully,” added Perreira.
The veteran commentator further added that he believes, despite Campbell being eligible for selection again when he turns 33, his enthusiasm for the game at that time could be gone.
“His age is there, his keenness is there, but it’s not just him been out of the Test game, this ban will take him out of the Jamaica setup.”