January 30, 2013 at 5:54 p.m.
Athlete of the Year
Building on his father’s legacy
But his son Janeiro has taken the solid foundation he laid and surpassed his father this year.
“When I first started playing as a youngster, we would always play on the porch. He would always let me know what I was doing wrong; what I was doing right; and what I could improve on.
“He’s always been there for me to let me know what I needed to do as to what he had done and what I could do a little better.”
This dividends certainly paid off this year.
Tucker says his year of highlights aren’t limited to playing for the national team. Winning the Belco Cup for Southampton Rangers.
“Batting with Lionel (Cann) and winning that was a definite highlight of my year.”
He said the 125 against Canada in the Intercontinental Cup was also on his list for his best sporting moments of the year.
But it was his international duty and blasting a 132 against the Americans in the ICC Trophy was the tops.
He said qualfying for the World Cup “was on my mind even before I went to bat. We were in a little bit of trouble (four wickets down for 88 runs)and I said ‘Today is my day. If I do well, we’ll qualify for the World Cup.’”
Tucker attributes getting two quality international centuries due to the “hard work I’ve put in this year. I’ve really trained hard. I’ve listened to what the coach (Gus Logie) has said about fixing certain things in my game.”
The master blaster said that by qualifying for the World Cup, Bermuda is already reaping the rewards.
“We’ve just had the four young guys go to South Africa. The younger guys are going to benefit more than the guys that got us to the World Cup.”
He added that the $11 million given to the Bermuda Cricket Board from Government is going to have a positive impact over the next five years.
“I want to play in all of them. Nothing can compare to the exposure you get when you play the top teams. That way I can be ready for what’s coming ahead at the World Cup.”
What are Bermuda’s chances at the World Cup?
“Being realistic, at this point, we probably won’t win a game, but the main thing is to compete. Hopefully we can score 250 on a regular basis and make the other teams struggle to get the 250 and, hopefully, come up with a victory.”
Tucker said even though this was his best year ever, “I can get 100 per cent better. I can still improve my fitness and by playing against the better players will help me improve my game.[[In-content Ad]]
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