Newsday's Star of the Week: Jadon Simon rescues St Mary's with heroic knock

ST Mary's College (CIC) got their innings off to a disastrous start against Presentation College San Fernando in their round-five match in the PowerGen Secondary Schools Cricket League premier division on February 11.

CIC were three wickets down with just five runs on the board, before Jadon Simon stepped in to rescue the innings. The right-handed batsman struck 117 to steer the "Saints" out of trouble and post a respectable 177 all out.

As a result of his incredible accomplishment, Simon is Newsday's star of the week.

The victory for St Mary's would have been considered an upset by many, as "Pres" are loaded with quality including Aadian Racha, who recently earned a call up for the TT Red Force team.

St Mary's wrapped up a narrow 16-run win as Presentation were dismissed for 161.

The win certainly kept St Mary's in the title race as they now have a record of three wins, one loss and one no result.

Newsday spoke with Simon about his innings and the memorable match for the St Mary's cricket team.

Name: Jadon Simon

Form: Upper Six

Batting style: Right-handed batsman

Bowling style: Right-arm medium pace

Residence: Carapo

Favourite cricketer: Andre Russell

Star performance: 117 runs

You came into bat with St Mary's on 5/3, what was your mindset when you got to the crease?

My mindset was to occupy the crease as long as possible and get the team to a defendable total.

Would you rate this innings as your best for St Mary's?

Yes, scoring a hundred for CIC would definitely rank as one of my best or if not my best innings for CIC because of the significant impact it had on the game and because it is my highest score for the school.

Were you more excited or nervous to face a tough opposition in Presentation San Fernando?

I was very much excited for this game because I was up for the challenge and knew that my team was capable of putting up a fight.

St Mary's are off to a solid start this season. What are the goals for this team?

The goal for this team is to win the SSCL and bring home a title this year.

What do you think of Khalfani Wiltshire's six-wicket haul for St Mary's?

He has been taking wickets whole season for us. He has been an exceptional player, but what stood out the most in that game was his composure and his ability to make clear-cut decisions under pressure.

What are your goals as a cricketer?

My goals as a cricketer are to keep improving my game, keep working hard and to play cricket at its highest level.

What has led to St Mary's having three out of five wins this season?

I would say it is an allround performance from the team.