Humbling experience

Life, it turns out, is one long lesson. Learning the lesson and applying it is the key to success.

Canada's cricketers must learn quickly. On their first outing at the Caribbean Twenty20 tournament in Antigua they were given a sharp lesson in how this form of the game is won and lost.

In a nutshell Canada was outplayed by the Windward Islands. The Canadians didn't score enough runs to give themselves a competitive total to defend. Their experienced opponents were not under pressure and when they did make occasional mistakes Canada's fielding was not up to scratch.

What should we expect? Canada is essentially an enthusiastic bunch of semi professionals. Put them on the same field as seasoned pros and the outcome is pretty predictable most of the time. Based on Canada's opening performance I believe we should expect more.

There was nothing wrong with the start. Opener Zubin Surkari was a little unfortunate to go early on but his demise brought Ruvindu Gunasekera to the middle. The young left hander set about the Windward's bowlers, finding the boundary on a regular basis.

The opening powerplay yielded 48 runs at a more than respectable rate of eight an over. With time and wickets in hand Canada was looking composed and aggressive. A total of around 140 seemed well within reach which would mean the Windwards would have to take risks from the get-go.

But when Gunasekera lost his opening partner Hiral Patel the downward spiral was swift and uncomfortable. The middle order engine room went missing in action when skipper Jimmy Hansra lofted an easy catch to mid-off for three and Rizwan Cheema was unnecessarily run out for a duck.

The boundaries dried up, the run rate plummeted and Canada became becalmed in the middle of the Caribbean. The first 50 came up in less than seven overs but the next half century ate up 10 more. Despite the best efforts of Raza-ur-Rehman, who struck a patient 34, there would be no grandstand finish.

Despite its brevity, building partnerships is a major factor in T20. Canada's inability to do so ultimately cost the Canucks vital runs in a game where every one is vital to collective cause. In stark contrast, the Windwards enjoyed an unbroken second wicket stand of 94 to cruise to victory.

On this evidence Canada certainly has plenty of room for improvement. The players and their coach don't need me to remind them. But the fundamentals, such as deciding against risky singles and holding catches, must be more professional at this level.

T20 cricket is all about entertainment. It is the moment where a run chase turns into a flurry of excitement. The batsmen must gamble everything in pursuit of the win and Jamaica owes a debt of gratitude to Marlon Samuels for digging them out of a huge hole.

The Combined Campuses & Colleges seemed destined to upset the Jamaicans who were running out of time and wickets in their opening game. With two overs to go Jamaica still required 26 before Samuels starting swinging. Eight balls and 27 runs later it was all over in stunning fashion.

It was the ultimate smash and grab to help kick the Caribbean T20 into high gear.

Nigel Reed covers the Indian Premier League for sportsnet.ca. Follow Nigel on Twitter at @Nigel_Reed