Nkrumah Bonner looks the part. He combines an orthodox technique with a contented strut. His sleeves are long and his collar is popped. He takes guard by removing a bail and hammering it into the ground. Classical style combined with Caribbean flair. The Jamaican James Bond.It would be wrong to describe Bonner’s exemplary hundred today, his second in Test cricket, as an arrival on the scene. Bonner’s been about for a long time. An international debut came in 2011 in a T20I against England, in which he scored three runs and bowled two overs for 18. A second unsuccessful appearance came six months later against Australia. He scored a tortuous 27 off 34 balls and was promptly dropped.And from that point, nothing. No runs, no call-ups, nada. Between 2012 and 2019, Bonner didn’t score a first-class century and only averaged above 30 in a first-class season once. But then a switch flipped.Called back into the Jamaica side in early 2019, Bonner scored 97 against Barbados in an innings he describes as the turning point of his career. From that day forward the floodgates were opened. Runs, Nkrumah, runs. They’re everywhere.
