The Editor,
It was Saturday, March 7, 2020, at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy located at Tarouba, South Trinidad - venue for the four-day regional match between arch-rivals Trinidad & Tobago and Barbados.
I was seated high up in the TTCB Sky box hosted by the president, Azim Bassarath. Two of the guests that day were the parents of Joshua Da Silva, Michael and Caroline Da Silva. Their son had scored 77 in the first innings and they were anxiously awaiting his second innings knock. T&T was in control of the match.
I had an opportunity to chat with them for over two hours. Apart from his love for curry, they proudly spoke about his greater love for sports and in particular, the wonderful game of cricket.
According to his parents, Josh is the emblem of discipline, hard work and humility.
Josh came out to bat, but this time around, he fell for 15, bowled by a top delivery from fast bowler Chemar Holder.
"Good ball," acknowledged his dad. T&T eventually won the match by 147 runs.
Earlier in January, Josh scored his maiden first-class hundred (113*) vs Jamaica at the same venue.
Fast forward to December 11, 2020, at the Basin Reserve Cricket Ground, Wellington, New Zealand.
Josh was one of the six reserves selected for the New Zealand tour. It was only after the regular wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich pulled out for "personal reasons" that he was drafted into the Test squad for the second test.
At the age of 22, Joshua Da Silva became the sixth West Indian wicket-keeper to score a half-century on test debut and the first since 2005. In a losing cause, he scored a well-crafted 57 in the second innings in 84 balls with six fours. Josh looked rather comfortable playing against the Kiwi world-class pace attack of Southee, Boult, Wagner and Jamieson.
Joshua Da Silva had already laid a solid foundation to play cricket at the highest level and more so in foreign conditions.
In January 2016, Josh was part of an Under-17 Goodwill Tour to New Zealand. According to his coach and mentor, André Lawrence (a former T&T all-rounder), Josh excelled on the tour, scoring over 500 runs. The local boys won ten out of eleven games.
In 2017, Josh was the recipient of the Kieron Pollard Scholarship Scheme that took him to England for a period of almost six months. He played third division club cricket for Surrey-based Old Wimbledonian CC and averaged over 60!
As congratulations poured from all quarters after his successful test debut, his dad revealed to me that during his college days, Josh was asked to choose between cricket and football - both of which he played dutifully for his alma mater, St. Mary's College.
The right choice was made.
Joshua Da Silva's dream to become a West Indian test cricketer has been fulfilled and he wants to keep that dream alive.
Reza Abasali
Student of West Indian Cricket History
El Socorro
