Jason Holder

The Windies recorded a four-wicket win over England in the first Test, in Southampton, to take a 1-0 lead in the three-Test series last week.  Should they be able to muster an identical result at the end of the second Test, in Manchester, Holder’s team will not just successfully retain the Wisden Trophy but do something no West Indian team has done in 32 years.

The captain, who has been quick to put down references to the team as the best in a generation, was just as quick to dismiss any hints of premature adulation or celebration.

“The series is still wide open.  There are 10 days of cricket left.  It’s one day at a time for us, England is a very good cricket team.  They have some world-class players, so we have our work cut out for us to win another match,” Holder told members of the media via a Zoom conference call on Wednesday.

“We don’t get too far ahead of ourselves.  This group to me has done just a good job not only for this series but in the last couple of years in terms of our results,” he added.

“Winning the first Test match is just one piece of the puzzle.  We have two other games we have to play, and we don’t get ahead of ourselves.  It’s the last thing we want to do in terms of getting complacent and getting too far ahead.  We start fresh with 10 solid days of cricket.”

Chasing a target of 233, Man-of-the-Match Hope scored 110 and Lewis featured in an opening stand of 143, a record-opening stand for the West Indies against Sri Lanka in the West Indies, which was ended when the latter was bowled by an in-swinging yorker from Dushmantha Chameera for 65.

Lewis had faced 90 balls in his 109-minute stay at the crease hitting four fours and two sixes.

Hope, who dropped from the West Indies Test squad last year for loss of form, was a picture of composure, facing 136 balls from which he hit 12 fours and a six in his 10th ODI century before he, too, was bowled by Dushmantha Chameera who finished with 2-50 from his 10 overs.

Hope also shared in a 72-run second-wicket stand with Darren Bravo who hit two fours and a six and in his unbeaten on 37 at the end. With him was Jason Mohammed, who was not out on 13.

Sri Lanka would have been disappointed after winning the toss and opting to take first strike, were given a solid platform of 105.

The partnership was broken two balls into the 20^th over by Kieron Pollard, who brilliantly caught Dimuth Karunaratne off his own bowling for 52. He had faced 61 balls and struck four fours in his 89 minutes at the crease.

Eleven balls later it was 112 for 2 when Danushka Gunathilaka, who was going well on 55 when he was controversially given out for obstructing the field, ending his 98-minute stay at the crease during which he struck seven fours from the 61 balls he faced.

The incident seemed to rattle Sri Lanka as two run-outs (Pathum Nissanka and Angelo Matthews) followed that saw Sri Lanka slide to 126 for 4.

Ashen Bandara scored the third half-century of the Sri Lankan innings that provided some stability to the lower order but by then the run rate had fallen before five runs and over and he was without a partner who could successfully take on the West Indies bowling attack.

His was the ninth wicket to fall in the 48^th over bowled by Jason Holder for an even 50 that included four fours.

Holder, who also accounted for the wicket of Chameera returned figures of 2-39. Jason Mohammed, who was introduced into the attack late had 2-12 from his four overs having claimed the wickets of Kamindu Mendis and Wanindu Hasaranga de Silva.

There was a wicket each for Alzarri Joseph, Pollard and Fabian Allen, in a performance of which Coach Phil Simmons would be proud.

The teams were due to contest a three-Test series from June but it was postponed until July. If it is decided that the tour will go head it will most likely be played behind closed doors due to the coronavirus pandemic.

However, whether the tour occurs is contingent on guarantees that the West Indies players and management will be safe.

According to Andrew Mason, the Barbados-based cricket commentator and host of the Mason and Guest talk show, he has confirmed that the players were contacted and that Trinidadian fast bowler Shannon Gabriel was among them, having recovered from surgery and is now fit to play again.

In addition to Gabriel, Mason reports, others called include Darren Bravo, Joshua Da Silva, Anderson Phillips and Shannon Gabriel.

Sunil Ambris, Preston McSween, Alzarri Joseph, Jahmar Hamilton and Rahkeem Cornwall; John Campbell, Paul Palmer, Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, Markino Mindley, Shimron Hetmyer, Veerasammy Permaul and Keemo Paul; Jason Holder, Kraigg Braithwaite, Shane Moseley, Kemar Roach, Chemar Holder, Keon Harding, Shane Dowrich, Shai Hope, Kyle Mayers, Roston Chase, Sharmarh Brooks, and Jamal Warrican.

CWI CEO Johnny Grave seemed to have confirmed the news during an interview on the Cricket Show, saying that the West Indies would want a minimum of four weeks in the UK to prepare for the first Test.

Two of those weeks, he said, could be in quarantine if the squad was based at a place where it could train.

He said he would need to be 100 per cent sure that travelling to England didn't put any player at unnecessary risk.

"We've had, as you can imagine, lots of conversations individually and - as of the start of this month - we started really a much wider discussion with the ECB over what a tour might look like," said Grave.

The West Indies will play three ODIs on March 16, 18 and 21, followed by three T20Is on March 25, 26 and 28. 

In the ODIs, Shai Hope will have his first series as captain with allrounder Rovman Powell appointed as the new vice-captain. In the T20Is, captain Rovman Powell will be supported by a new vice-captain in batting allrounder Kyle Mayers.

Fast bowler Shannon Gabriel has earned a recall to the ODI squad on the back of his performances during the CG United Super50 Cup last November. 

He was the joint leading wicket-taker spearheading the Trinidad & Tobago Red Force bowling attack, taking 15 wickets in seven matches at an average of 14.2. He last played ODIs for the West Indies at the ICC Cricket World Cup in July 2019. 

Left-arm pacer Obed McCoy has been named in the T20I squad subject to medical clearance.  Fast bowler Jayden Seales remains unavailable for selection following a knee injury and subsequent surgery, while another fast bowler Anderson Phillip has returned to training but is not yet match-fit. 

Lead Selector the Most Hon. Dr Desmond Haynes said: “We have had some injuries to our fast-bowling pool so therefore we see Gabriel as an ideal fit heading into South Africa, and the surfaces we expect to play on. It is felt that we need someone to get those early wickets and he is the kind of bowler that can do that. Judging from his performances in the CG United Super50 Cup, he is potentially a wicket-taking option up front.” 

Haynes added: “For the T20Is, we have an experienced squad. What we are looking for is to form a cohesive unit and look at the players who we believe can form the nucleus as we build towards doing very well and challenging when we host the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in June 2024.”

FULL SQUADS

One-Day Internationals

Shai Hope (Captain)

Rovman Powell (Vice Captain)

Shamarh Brooks

Yannic Cariah

Keacy Carty

Roston Chase

Shannon Gabriel

Jason Holder

Akeal Hosein

Alzarri Joseph

Brandon King

Kyle Mayers

Nicholas Pooran

Romario Shepherd

Odean Smith

T20 Internationals

Rovman Powell (Captain)

Kyle Mayers (Vice Captain)

Shamarh Brooks

Yannic Cariah

Johnson Charles

Sheldon Cottrell

Jason Holder

Akeal Hosein

Alzarri Joseph

Brandon King

Obed McCoy

Nicholas Pooran

Raymon Reifer

Romario Shepherd

Odean Smith

White ball schedule in South Africa

Thursday, 16 March: 1st ODI at Buffalo Park, East London (day/night)

Saturday, 18 March: 2nd ODI at Buffalo Park, East London (day/night)

Tuesday, 21 March: 3rd ODI at JB Marks Oval, Potchefstroom 

Saturday, 25 March: 1st T20Is at SuperSport Park, Centurion

Sunday, 26 March: 2nd T20I at SuperSport Park, Centurion

Tuesday, 28 March: 3rd T20I at Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg (night)

Holder claimed an impressive 6 for 42 and Gabriel 4 for 62, as England were dismissed for 204, in the first innings.  Gabriel’s performance is all the more impressive with the series being the player’s first competitive match since recovering from ankle surgery last year.

In truth, concerns regarding Gabriel’s overall match fitness had quickly evaporated when he removed England opener Dom Sibley and provided plenty of deliveries that teased the edge of the batsmen in the first session.  He went on to account for, Rory Burns, Sibley's opening partner, Joe Denly, and James Anderson at the bottom of the order.

“Shannon was outstanding.  He came in after not playing cricket for a while, coming back off injury.  He is one of those players we try to manage as best as we possibly can,” Holder said following the end of the day’s play.

“He is a strike force for us, he is a weapon.  I think we were able to use him in short bursts where he can run in and express himself.  To me his consistency was good, and he looked good.”

In reply, the West Indies were 57 for 1 at the end of play, with John Campbell the batsman dismissed, on 28, by Anderson.

The Patriots won the toss and opted to bowl, taking wickets at regular intervals as the Barbados Royals posted 160-8, with Smit Patel, making his Hero CPL debut, top-scoring with 54.

The Patriots stumbled in their chase, a returning Chris Gayle top-scored with 42 runs and a defeat seemed likely until Sheldon Cottrell and Dominic Drakes put on an unlikely partnership with the bat, which culminated with Cottrell striking a six off the last ball for a dramatic win in front of the home crowd.

Barbados Royals had a steady start to their innings, Johnson Charles and Patel patiently accruing runs after the early dismissal of Shai Hope. Patel would eventually reach his half-century, while captain Jason Holder later made a quick cameo of 19 runs from his 7 balls. DJ Bravo, captaining the side, showed all his craft and guile in the format to take four wickets and stop Barbados Royals from piling on the runs towards the end of their innings. There were also impressive contributions with the ball from fast bowlers Cottrell and Netherlands international Paul van Meekeren.

St Kitts & Nevis Patriots were controlled as they started their innings, losing Evin Lewis in the Powerplay overs, but rebuilding with Devon Thomas and Gayle. It was another Hero CPL debutant, wrist spinner Jake Lintott, who made valuable inroads by first dismissing Gayle and then the dangerous Sherfane Rutherford two balls later. 20-year-old Nyeem Young dismissed the rest of the middle order and it seemed like the Patriots would not be able to chase the target. However, the late onslaught from Drakes and Cottrell with the bat ensured St Kitts & Nevis Patriots maintained their superb start to the tournament.

St Kitts & Nevis Patriots remain top of the Hero CPL league table with five wins out of five.

The 30-year-old former captain has not represented the regional team since March of this year.  Following his return from the India Premier League (IPL), it was announced that the player would be left out of the team, for the upcoming series, considering a recent heavy workload.

As a result, Holder has missed the team’s One Day International tours against The Netherlands, and Pakistan and a recent visit of Bangladesh.  The team easily won the first series but could certainly have used Holder’s experience and explosive all-round play as they struggled to find their footing against both Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The player is once again available ahead of the team’s series against India, which begins on Friday and Simmons admits he is impressed by what he has witnessed in training so far.

“It’s good to have him back,” Simmons told members of the media on Wednesday.

“He looks fresh, he had some time out of the game.  He has been bowling well the last two days and batting well too so it’s good to have him back.”

  The West Indies and India will face off in three ODIs.

Among them is Sir Vivian Richards, a man considered by many to be the greatest batsman of all time and one of the most destructive.

Richards, who played on the West Indies teams that won the Prudential World Cup in 1975 and 1979, said he still cannot believe that former West Indies captain Jason Holder, was not among the 15-man squad named for the world cup.

Holder, who played well in the recent CPL and took 16 wickets for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL this season, was only named among the four reserve players who will travel with the team to the United Arab Emirates where the West Indies will begin the defence of their title on October 23.

The decision by the selectors doesn’t sit well with the Master Blaster.

“I felt maybe it could have been a misprint and then hearing the news as well you think you were not hearing right at that particular time,” Sir Vivian told the Antigua Observer.

“We may have our issues with Jason when he was in charge as captain of the team, but we can never doubt the individual’s ability and his talent and I just felt sad that someone with such ability couldn’t make a West Indies T20, so that suggests to me that we must be seriously blessed with talented individuals the calibre of Jason Holder.”

Despite his misgivings, Richards urged fans to get behind the team as it goes for a third world title having won the tournament in 2012 and 2016.

West Indies open their defence against England in Dubai.

Having set the Nepalese a winning target of 340, West Indies bowlers, not helped by a several dropped catches, combined to restrict their opponents for 238 and achieve their second win from as many games in the ICC World Cup qualifiers.

Aarif Sheikh was the top scorer with 63 for the Nepalese team, who also got contributions of 42 from Gulsan Jha and 30 from Captain Rohit Paudel.

Jason Holder was the best of the bowlers with 3-43 from his 10 overs with Akeal Hosein 2-49 and Keemo Paul 2-63.

Nepal were fortunate not to have been dismissed for much less as the West Indies spilled several catches in the field.  Alzarri Joseph suffered the most with three catches dropped off his bowling as he finished with figures of 2-45.

Earlier, having been sent to bat, West Indies recovered from a poor start that saw them lose two wickets with only nine runs on the board to score 339-7.

Shai Hope scored 132, his 15^th ODI century while Nicholas Pooran scored 115. The Caribbean men also got useful scores of 32 from Brandon King and Rovman Powell 29.

Lalit Rajbanshi was the best of the Nepalese bowlers with 3-52.

Hope said he was happy to have been able to overcome some early challenges and the loss of two early wickets to score an important 100 for his team.

“I believe the rhythm was a bit off. I am just happy that I came good for the team. We were put on the backfoot there...happy to get the team over the line today. The key was absorbing as much pressure as possible and then find a way to transfer that pressure in the back end,” he said, revealing that Pooran’s arrival of the crease helped him turn things around.

“Pooran made it a lot easier for me. The aim was to take it as deep as possible give us the best chance towards the end. I don't think I hit the targets where I wanted to but happy to just bat as deep as I possibly could there. The team really needed me. They bowled well, must commend their bowlers, especially their spinners, they stuck to their task well.

“We batted well in that period to overcome their spin threat. There's obviously room for improvement, so we need to make sure we are ticking those boxes going into the next game.”

With the win the West Indies go top of Group A with four points from their two matches to date.

Leus du Plooy, with an unbeaten 40-ball 63, Tom Banton (38) and Tom Abell, unbeaten on 20, saw Dubai Capitals to victory at 139-1 with 25 balls to spare, after Gulf Giants, the team of West Indians Shimron Hetmyer and Carlos Brathwaite, were restricted to 138-6 from their allotment. Captain James Vince led the Giants from the front with a 53-ball 58, including four fours and two sixes, but lacked the necessary support, as Usman Khan (21) and Chris Jordan (30), were the next best scorers.

Holder, who was among five Capitals bowlers with a wicket apiece, ended with one for seven in two overs. By virtue of their win, Dubai Capitals booked a date with Nicholas Pooran's MI Emirates to decide the champions of this second edition of the tournament.

Scores: Gulf Giants 138-6 (20 overs); Dubai Capitals 139-1 (15.5 overs)

After suffering a 45-run defeat to MI Emirates in Qualifier 1, Gulf Giants would have hoped for better fortunes on this occasion, but those hopes were dashed as they lost Khan, Chris Lynn (zero), Jordan Cox (two) and Jamie Smith (zero), with just 40 runs on the board.

Hetmyer (eight), also had a brief stay in the middle, but despite the setback, Vince pushed on with some expansive shots that added some respectability to the innings before he eventually holed out to Powell off Olly Stone with the score at 117-6.

Jordan then smashed two sixes and a solitary four in his 29-ball knock, while Jamie Overton added 12 runs to the total in a six-ball cameo.

With just 139 to get, Plooy and Banton went on the charge in a 98-run opening stand, which all but signalled the writing on the wall for Gulf Giants. Banton had four boundaries in his run-a-ball 38, before he fell to Liam Dawson.

Abell joined Plooy, and the two posted an unbeaten 41-run stand for the second wicket to push the Capitals across the line. Plooy had five fours and three sixes in his knock, while Abell had two boundaries and a solitary six.

Powell and Holder will rub shoulders with fellow West Indians, Pooran, Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard and Akeal Hosein, in the showpiece contest on Saturday.

The 26-year-old, who was a reserve batter for the series against Bangladesh earlier this year, could open the batting alongside captain Kraigg Brathwaite.

Chanderpaul scored the second-most runs in the 2021-22 West Indies four-day championship, hitting 439 across eight innings at an average of 73.16.

His father made 164 Test appearances for West Indies, scoring 11,867 runs at an average of 51.37, managing 30 centuries. Only Brian Lara has scored more in the team's history (11,912 runs).

"We have been playing good Test cricket and expect to do well against the Australians on their home turf," lead selector Desmond Haynes said.

"We have one newcomer to the team in Tagenarine Chanderpaul. He equipped himself very well in the West Indies Championship four-day matches and also did a very good job at the top of the order against Bangladesh A in Saint Lucia this summer.

"He has what it takes to do well at the highest level."

Meanwhile, Jason Holder, Roston Chase and Shamarh Brooks also return to the squad, with West Indies due to play two Test matches in Australia in November and December.

The tour will be the last for head coach Phil Simmons, who offered his resignation after West Indies suffered a humiliating first-round exit at the T20 World Cup.

Holder was involved in four dismissals as SRH restricted the Royals to 154 for 6. He ran out opener Robin Uthappa for 19 and later bowled the dangerous Sanju Samson for 36. In his final over spell, he took the wickets of Steven Smith for 19 and Riyan Parag for 20 to return impressive figures of 3 for 33.

Manish Panday’s unbeaten 47-ball 83 and Vijay Shankar, who was not out on a patient 52, then posted a 140-run stand to take SRH home with 11 balls to spare.

Afterwards, a pleased SRH Captain David Warner said it all started with the bowling.

"It was a stunning performance. We were able to bring them back after Powerplay. All in all, the kind of game we were asking for,” he said while singling out the West Indies captain Holder for special praise.

“Jason adds an extra string to our bow. His height. His experience. And he couldn't bat today, but he is an all-round package,” said Warner of the Barbadian allrounder, who was called up in September to replace Australian Mitchell Marsh who suffered an ankle injury in SRH’s first match of the season during a loss to the Royal Challengers Bangalore.

The Kings won the toss and opted to bat first and they filled their boots with a barnstorming innings that saw them post the highest total of the season thus far with a fantastic 201-6.

Healthy contributions from all members of the batting order negated a brilliant spell of bowling from Jason Holder and ensured the Royals would have to produce something very special to win.

The Royals failed to get going in their reply, losing five wickets in the PowerPlay to all but end the chase but a spirited 48 from Nyeem Young ensured the Royals added some late respectability to proceedings.

Earlier on the Kings had posted 201-6, led by a blistering show by the opening pair of Johnson Charles and Faf Du Plessis, the Kings raced to 61 but two wickets in Jason Holder’s first over brought things back. Charles and Shadrack Descarte falling in quick succession to give the Royals something to work with.

However, that joy proved to be short-lived as first Sean Williams and Du Plessis, then Williams and Sikandar Raza made light work of the Royals bowling to put the Kings into a commanding position heading into the final five overs.

But that platform failed to be fully exploited as Qais Ahmad and Jason Holder pulled the momentum back by dismissing Williams and Raza respectively.

Holder was to finish the match with 4-38 adding Roston Chase to his list of scalps but the lack of consistent support elsewhere ensured the Kings were still able to post an imposing total for the Royals to chase.

Chasing 202 to win was always a tall order for the Royals to chase but the reply was over before it began, following a run out for Rahkeem Cornwall, Matthew Forde was destructor in chief removing the Royals top order to leave the innings in trouble at 21-4.

Kyle Mayers briefly threaten to counter attack before Alzarri Joseph had him caught on the third man boundary for 16.

From there the Kings took the game away with wickets falling at regular intervals to dismiss the Royals for 147 to chalk up their first win of the tournament.

Scores: Saint Lucia Kings 201-6 (Williams 47, Du Plessis 46; Holder 4-38, Qais 2-35) beat Barbados Royals 147 all out (Young 48, Ferreira 19; Forde 3-12, Raza 1-21) by 54 runs

Joshua Bishop came in for his second senior T20 game, replacing the injured Mitchell Santner, and just as he had in his first match, last year against the same opposition, he dismissed Rakheem Cornwall in the first over. Andre Fletcher’s innings was dramatic but brief - he smashed Holder for six first ball, but the Tridents captain trapped him LBW second - and after eight balls the Zouks were 12/2.

Bishop bowled an impressive second over, beating both Leniko Boucher and Roston Chase and having Chase dropped at point. Holder showed faith in Walsh after his mauling at the hands of Kieron Pollard yesterday, and Walsh should have dismissed Boucher but Shai Hope missed a simple stumping. Rashid Khan was as accurate as ever, and the Zouks reached the Powerplay at 35/2.

Boucher was frenetic before Walsh bowled him with a quicker ball. Chase was able to free his arms and sweep Ashley Nurse for four, but Walsh was visibly growing in confidence and beat Chase in the flight with a slower googly to bowl him. Nurse continued, Rashid again held back for the second part of the innings, and the Afghan pair went boundary-less. The Zouks reached halfway at 58/4.

Nabi for once failed, skying a flighted Walsh googly to the captain at long-off, and with him gone Rashid returned and troubled both Najibullah Zadran and captain Daren Sammy. Bishop’s return over was also accurate, and a frantic Sammy ran himself out to leave his team 65/6 in the 13th. Javelle Glen though started in style with a gigantic Hero Maximum that landed on the roof.

Najibullah late-cut Rashid with just enough pace to find the boundary, but the rest of the over went scoreless. Nurse got a third over with two left-handers at the crease and picked up Glen, albeit it was a full toss whipped straight to Walsh at deep midwicket.

Holder went to his seamers Nyeem Young and Raymon Reifer, and a restless Najibullah fell to the latter thanks to a good low catch by Joshua Bishop at deep square leg. Reifer got a second thanks to Walsh expertly judging a mistimed Scott Kuggeleijn pull to juggle and hold near the rope.

Rashid was, predictably, too good for the tail and finished his spell with the wicket of his countryman Zahir Khan. Young with a tight over of 0/3 was the only one of the Tridents bowlers not to take a wicket, and they hadn’t even needed all 20 overs.

Hope and Johnson Charles started cautiously. The first aerial shot didn’t come until the 4th over, Charles almost holing out to mid-on, but a smattering of fours saw the Tridents score at a run a ball. Hope fell LBW to a good ball from Williams, but the Tridents reached the Powerplay at a steady 34/1.

That became 37/2 when Zahir bowled Kyle Mayers with a beauty that turned from middle to take off-stump, the no.3 again struggling against wrist-spin. Williams and Zahir snuck through a few tight overs, and even Charles’ third boundary was a controlled leg glance. Williams wasn’t giving up, beating Holder’s waft to pick up a second LBW, but at the drinks break the Tridents were 48/3 and needed barely over four an over.

The Tridents though continued to bat nervously - Chase and Glen, the latter bowling for the first time in senior T20 cricket, were tidy, and the leg-spinner Glen got his first wicket when Charles sliced to long-on where Williams took a good catch.

The Tridents suddenly found themselves 67/4 off 14, and Zahir, Nabi and Chase bowled tidily against a nervy Nurse and Corey Anderson. When Nabi beat Anderson in the flight and bowled him, the Tridents found themselves suddenly five down and needing over a run a ball. Sammy gave Glen the nod for the 19th, and Rashid fell clubbing the leg-spinner to Nabi, leaving Chase nine to defend off the last over.

Nurse fell to a good catch from Najibullah, but most importantly Chase started with three dot balls. Reifer missed a full toss and only managed three off two balls, leaving Young needing to hit his first-ever ball in Hero CPL over the ropes to seal a win that seemed a formality at almost every stage. He couldn’t do it, and while the Zouks bowlers deserve huge credit, for the second day in a row the Tridents found themselves wondering how on earth they had lost.

Summary (St Lucia Zouks 92 all out (Najibullah 22, Boucher 18, Chase 14; Walsh Jr 3/19, Reifer 2/5, Nurse 1/15, Rashid 1/17, Bishop 1/17) beat Barbados Tridents 89/7 (Charles 39, Hope 14, Nurse 12, Anderson 11; Glen 2/11, Williams 2/12, Chase 1/14, Nabi 1/18, Zahir 1/21) beat by 3 runs)

Upcoming Fixture: Sunday 30 August - Match 20: St Kitts & Nevis Patriots v Guyana Amazon Warriors (2:15pm),  1:15 pm Jamaica at Queen’s Park Oval

West Indies recently named seven uncapped players in a weakened 15-man squad for two Tests against Australia later this month, while South Africa also selected seven debutants for their two-Test series in New Zealand next month.

This, as South Africa’s top players have been allowed to focus their efforts on the shorter format, as the New Zealand tour clashes with the country’s premier Twenty20 domestic tournament.

"It's going to happen if the South African Cricket Board are any indication of the future, keeping their best players at home," Waugh said.

"If I was New Zealand, I wouldn't even play the series. I don't know why they're even playing. Why would you when it shows a lack of respect for New Zealand cricket?

"It's pretty obvious what the problem is — the West Indies aren't sending their full-strength side [to Australia this summer]. They haven't picked a full-strength Test team for a couple of years now.

"Someone like Nicholas Pooran is really a Test batsman who doesn't play Test cricket. Jason Holder, probably their best player, is not playing now. Even Pakistan didn't send a full side [to Australia],” he argued.

Both Holder, the Caribbean side's leading all-rounder, and batting all-rounder Kyle Mayers, skipped the Australia tour to explore T20 franchise opportunities.

While he acknowledged there is little financial incentive for smaller nations to play Test cricket, Waugh called for a standardised fee to be implemented by the ICC.

"If the ICC or someone doesn't step in shortly then Test cricket doesn't become Test cricket because you're not testing yourself against the best players,” Waugh said.

"I understand why players don't come; they're not getting paid properly. I don't understand why ICC or the top countries who are making a lot of money don't just have a regulation set fee for Test matches which is a premium so [that] people are incentivised to play Test Cricket. Otherwise, they'll just play T10 or T20.

"The public are the ones who are going to suffer because it's not the full side playing so it's not Test cricket,” he added.

Stokes was named man of the match after another magnificent performance in Manchester, where England levelled the three-Test series with a 113-run victory on the final day.

England's vice-captain made a brilliant 176 in the first innings and cracked an unbeaten 78 from just 57 balls on day five after being promoted to open, with Joe Root's side in need of quick runs before the declaration.

Stokes also took 2-30 on Monday after picking up a wicket in the first innings.

Windies skipper Holder showed some defiance with the bat before being removed by Dom Bess as the tourists failed to secure a draw after winning the first Test in Southampton.

Holder also drops a place to third in the bowler rankings, with New Zealand seamer Neil Wagner moving up to second behind Australia quick Pat Cummins.

Stokes can seemingly do no wrong at the moment and the 29-year-old is now officially the best all-rounder in the world ahead of the series decider at Old Trafford, which starts on Friday.

He is the first England player to top the all-rounder rankings since Andrew Flintoff.

In a low-scoring match between the IPL's bottom two sides, Jason Holder's 47 not out was not enough for the Sunrisers to claim just a second win of the season.

Aiden Markram (27) top scored for Punjab, with captain KL Rahul (21) the only other player to knock off over 20 runs.

Holder was crucial to keeping Punjab to 125-7, as he took three wickets for 19 runs from his four overs, yet Mohammed Shami took the huge wickets of David Warner and Kane Williamson in his first two overs to deal the Sunrisers a blow.

The Sunrisers were reduced to just 20 runs in the powerplay, the lowest total in their IPL history, and despite Holder's unbeaten stand, which included five sixes, they did not have enough to get over the line.

Punjab's win takes them onto eight points, level with three other teams all hunting a play-off spot.

Holder's heroics not enough

There was no doubting who the star of the show was on Saturday, with West Indies international Holder brilliant with both the bat and ball. Yet his efforts proved fruitless, with Nathan Ellis managing to keep him at bay in the final over. 

"It is a tough loss. We left a little bit too much in the back end to do. That's how the game plays. We were behind the eight ball. I just wanted to give myself a chance and strike well," said Holder.

Shami and Bishnoi strike

The Sunrisers' confidence was knocked early by Shami (2-14), as he dismissed Warner (2) and Williamson (1) to stifle the chase before it had even got started.

Ravi Bishnoi then added three wickets for just 24 runs to apply further pressure, skittling through Hyderabad's middle order.

Glenn Maxwell hit his first half-century in the tournament since 2016 as the Royal Challengers – who had beaten defending champions Mumbai Indians in their opening fixture – posted 149-8 after being put into bat.

Hyderabad appeared on course to prevail in pursuit of their target when they reached 96-1, only for the departure of captain David Warner – caught in the deep for 54 - to trigger a dramatic collapse.

Shahbaz Ahmed claimed three wickets in an over, including Jonny Bairstow and Manish Pandey with back-to-back deliveries, to completely change the complexion of a run chase that fell apart.

While Rashid Khan made 17 in a hurry the Sunrisers still finished up six runs short on 143-9, meaning they have still yet to win a completed fixture at the venue in Chennai.

Bangalore's innings had been similar too, captain Virat Kohli making 33 before his departure to Jason Holder started a mid-innings wobble, his team slipping from 91-2 to 109-6.

However, Maxwell eventually mastered the tough batting conditions, producing a late onslaught as 39 runs came from the final three overs. He was dismissed off the last delivery of the innings for 59, caught behind to give Holder final figures of 3-30.

Taking it to the Max

Maxwell endured a lean 2020 IPL campaign in the United Arab Emirates, averaging 15.42 for Kings XI Punjab as he made only 108 runs. Having been released ahead of the auction, Bangalore already appear to be getting plenty for their money.

The Australian has now scored 98 runs in his two innings for the Royal Challengers, who sit on top of the table in the embryonic stages of the season.

Chennai trouble for chasing teams

After Kolkata Knight Riders had faltered in pursuit of a 153-run target to lose narrowly against Mumbai at the ground 24 hours earlier, Sunrisers let the same situation happen when seemingly well on top.

Shahbaz (3-7) bowled only two overs, yet the second from the left-arm spinner saw Bairstow, Pandey - who struggled to up the pace as he made 38 from 39 balls - and Abdul Samad all caught off top-edged attempts to go big to the leg side.

The West Indies are playing in the first bio-secure Test series since the COVID-19 pandemic impacted sports worldwide and Hetmyer, Bravo and Keemo Paul decided against touring England on the back of health concerns.

The absence of the trio means there are questions about how the team will line up but head coach Phil Simmons, speaking during a press conference this morning, believes the answers are to be found in the next few practice games.

According to the coach, who was responding to questions about the batting positions of skipper Jason Holder and wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich when the three-Test series begins at the Rose Bowl in Southampton, the options are numerous.

“We have thought about quite a few things. The three-day game which starts tomorrow and then the four-day game will help us to decide how we structure the batting,” said Simmons.

“So there are possibilities in different directions. Jason could bat six, Dowrich could bat six, so we look at the three-day game and the four-day game and then make a decision from there,” he said.

There are also places to be considered with the returning Jermaine Blackwood to the batting line-up along with the likes Shamarh Brooks and Nkrumah Bonner and where they bat, if at all, in the new-look line-up.

The West Indies will play a three-day match game at their Emirates Old Trafford base beginning tomorrow, June 23, before a four-day encounter beginning on June 29.

Test Squad: Jason Holder (captain), Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, Kraigg Brathwaite, Shamarh Brooks, John Campbell, Roston Chase, Rahkeem Cornwall, Shane Dowrich, Chemar Holder, Shai Hope, Alzarri Joseph, Raymon Reifer, Kemar Roach

Reserve Players: Sunil Ambris, Joshua DaSilva, Shannon Gabriel, Keon Harding, Kyle Mayers, Preston McSween, Marquino Mindley, Shayne Moseley, Anderson Phillip, Oshane Thomas, Jomel Warrican