Jamaica Tallawahs players Christopher Gayle and Andre Russell are two of the most destructive batsmen in the shortened format of the game.

And naturally, they share much of the spotlight for the Tallawahs’ four Hero Caribbean Premier League home games at Sabina Park — beginning with the grudge match against Guyana Amazon Warriors, scheduled for last night.

The Tallawahs Head Coach Paul Nixon, who has been calling for some of the less established players to make major contributions, has huge expectations for the exciting 22-year-old all-rounder Rovman Powell.

The Jamaican is an aggressive right-hand batsman who bowls medium pace, and he’s athletic. He appears a good fit for Twenty20 cricket.

Many, including Nixon, have compared Powell’s clean hitting of a cricket ball to his powerful compatriot Russell.

But Englishman Nixon advanced the comparisons beyond that, and has likened Powell’s style to the former West Indies batting genius Brian Lara and another ex-regional star, the super elegant Carl Hooper.

“He [Powell] is a phenomenal talent…he’s got Andre Russell’s hitting ability, and he’s got the smoothness and grace of a Carl Hooper or a Brian Lara,” Nixon told the Jamaica Observer during Wednesday’s training session.

“We’ve just got to bring that mix together so that he has clear decision-making,“ the coach added.

Nixon, who coached the Tallawahs to the inaugural CPL title in 2013, has been working closely with Powell since returning this season to guide the Jamaica franchise.

On Wednesday, while some Tallawahs players sat out an optional training session, Powell was engaged in range hitting on one of the batting strips at Sabina Park as balls were fired at him by a bowling machine brought in from England.

Thereafter, Nixon gave tips to the young cricketer during a one on one net session.

“All the time he’s learning and the mindset of these players is to continue to show improvement, and Rovman wants to show the home crowd what he’s capable of. He’s capable of match-winning performances with the bat and with the ball.

“It’s great that the fans can see, but ultimately it’s about him doing his thing really well. The by-product of that the fans will love it,” said Nixon, who played 19 One Day Internationals for England.

He said Powell, a native of Old Harbour, St Catherine, still has to learn how to manage the strike when batting.

Nixon used an example from the 10th over of the rain-abandoned game against Barbados Tridents at Kensington Oval where Powell faced three dot balls while attempting big shots off the bowling of Ravi Rampaul instead of going for the single to get the in-form Gayle on strike.

Powell eventually hit the final ball of the over for six, while the other delivery he faced went for leg byes after a bouncer clipped his helmet.

“He would have learnt some good things the other night where he faced a few dot balls there. Perhaps that would have been the right time to give the strike to Chris at the other end, who was almost 50 not out and seeing the ball coming down like a football,” Nixon told the JamaicaObserver.

The Tallawahs’ next home game is set for today against St Kitts & Nevis Patriots. They then host Trinbago Knight Riders on Monday before closing out the home leg versus Barbados Tridents next Wednesday.