THOUGH thrilled at the prospect of making his senior team debut, former Jamaica youth batsman Justin Beckford says he is aware that a greater degree of focus will be required to be successful in first class cricket.

Beckford, a former national age-group captain who also represented the West Indies Under-19s, is among the 13-member Jamaica Scorpions squad selected for the sixth-round regional four-day match against title-holders Guyana Harpy Eagles. The contest is set for Sabina Park, starting Wednesday.

“The feeling is a special one; I’m very excited to have the chance, not just to represent my country but [to] represent all the persons who believed in me. All in all, I have been dreaming of this moment and the Lord is faithful,” the 19-year-old Lucas Cricket Club player told the
Jamaica Observer.

The selection of Beckford comes as out-of-favour West Indies batsman Jermaine Blackwood is left out of the Scorpions squad after an abysmal run in the regional four-day tournament. The 32-year-old Blackwood, a former Test vice-captain and a cornerstone of Jamaica’s batting since his first class debut in 2012, has a top score of 27 in nine innings this season.

In drawing a comparison to what he has experienced at the youth and club levels, Beckford said he expects “much more consistency” from opposing players in all departments of first class cricket.

“…a great level of focus will be key in how I approach the senior level,” the right-hander reasoned.

Beckford, a stylish and composed presence at the crease, always appears to have plenty of time to play each delivery — typically a hallmark of an outstanding batsman.

He was impressive in schoolboy cricket last season — his final campaign at that level. He notched five centuries as Wolmer’s Boys’ lifted the urban area Grace Shield title.

He was one of the top players as Jamaica’s Under-19 team claimed the regional double, winning both Cricket West Indies Rising Stars three-day and 50-over tournaments in 2023.

In this season’s Senior Cup, the country’s top-tier cricket tournament for clubs and parishes, Beckford has scored centuries against Mico University College (117) and The University of the West Indies (127). Those came after he struck 99 against Boys’ Town CC on the opening weekend of the season. He also had scores of 30 and 42 in two innings against former champions Kingston CC.

Those contributions, no doubt, tipped the scales in his favour as Jamaica’s selectors sought to pump an injection of youth into a Scorpions batting line-up that has struggled this season despite the presence of relatively experienced players.

And even as he is scoring runs freely in the local competition he said he is more focused on the processes involved when he is at the crease than he is about the eventual outcome.

“To me, form is a matter of mindset and being in the right frame of mind to execute effectively. I have been putting in work, especially, on the mental aspect of the game — which I believe is a key part of the sport,” he explained.

And if he is given the nod against the Harpy Eagles the talented stroke maker said he will be influenced solely by the match situation and not any preconceived notion.

“The mindset will be to assess the situation my team is in and play accordingly — not withholding my skill set — and just prioritising execution,” he said.