Jason Holder

The tall seam bowler engineered a batting collapse as the last five wickets fell for 19 runs that resulted in the visitors being bowled out for 169 on a good surface at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium.

Holder registered his eighth five-wicket haul in Tests off 17.4 overs and in the process reached 200 first-class wickets. He was supported by 3-47 from Kemar Roach who has now taken 33 wickets at this venue in his sixth match.

Holder started by having Dinesh Chandimal caught at the wicket by Josh Da Silva just before lunch to leave Sri Lanka at 54-3. He later accounted for top scorer Lahiru Thirimanne, who was bowled for 73, a total that came off 180 balls and included four boundaries.

West Indies batted through the final hour to reach 13-0 at the close, with captain Kraigg Brathwaite on three not out and John Campbell on seven not out.

“It’s very pleasing, the ball came out very well, my rhythm was very good, and I also managed to get some movement off the pitch, so it was great to get among the wickets and pick up a five-for on the first day,” Holder said afterwards.

“We bowled really well, and we couldn’t have asked for much more. The discipline I showed with the ball was the key. Hopefully, going on later in the game I could make another major contribution with bat and with the ball.

“It was really good to see the batsmen fighting it through this evening as well, in what was a very important period. We want to go on tomorrow and set up a big total. That would be important for us as well. We were also very good in the field.”

The match resumes today at 9:00 am Jamaica time (10 am ECT).

West Indies skipper Kieron Pollard had won the toss and elected to bat, with the hosts posting 179-4, with England falling short in reply, bowled out for 162 in the 20th over with Player of the Match Holder (27-5) decisive with a double hat-trick in the final over.

After an encouraging start, West Indies did suffer a minor wobble as they lost wickets in consecutive overs, with Kyle Mayers (31) and Romario Shepherd (six) falling in the sixth and seventh, giving England a boost.

Brandon King (34) was the next to go as he was caught at the rope, and Nicholas Pooran (21) was dismissed in the 14th over, with West Indies looking solid if unspectacular ahead of the final five overs of their batting innings.

It was then that they really picked up the slack, with Pollard (41 not out) and Rovman Powell (35 not out) accumulating runs at a much greater rate, their fifth-wicket stand of 74 ultimately integral in the grand scheme of things.

The total of 180 certainly did not look unassailable for England and they reached the halfway stage at 86-2 having only lost Jason Roy (eight) and Tom Banton (16), with James Vince in fine form.

The wickets of Moeen Ali (14) and Liam Livingstone (six) followed just a few minutes apart, and while Vince (55) reached his half-century, he too departed in the 14th as a top-edged slog fell short of the boundary from Akeal Hosein (30-4).

The excellent Sam Billings (41) at least got England into a position where they were still alive in the final over, but they could not meet their target of 20 in six balls as Holder's incredible haul clinched the series.

Holder's historic heroics

Having almost looked without hope, England did make things a little tense towards the end – but what a performance from Holder.

Just when West Indies needed the ultimate display of experience, Holder took over in style. His hat-trick was the Windies' first in men's T20Is, and then he went one better. It was a truly memorable end to the series.

Billings deserving of praise

Although he was not England's highest scorer, Billings did play a vital role in keeping them in contention.

His 41 off 28 balls meant England were still in the hunt in the final over. A poorer showing could have seen them fold much earlier – he can leave with his head held high.

Elite athletes have spoken out against racism in society following the death of George Floyd, an African-American man who died in police custody in Minneapolis on May 25.

Several teams in the Bundesliga, which was the first major European football league to resume amid the coronavirus pandemic, have also taken part in demonstrations.

Windies captain Holder was asked if similar actions will be taken by his team for the first Test at the Ageas Bowl, which will be played without fans in attendance, on July 8.

"It definitely - probably - will be discussed among us and we'll definitely decide how we'll go forward as a team with it," he told a news conference on Wednesday.

"I just want to make sure whatever we do, if we do anything, that it is done the right way. Whatever point we make, if we do decide to show some sort of solidarity with it, we'll make sure everyone is on the same page.

"But I don't want to sit here and speak for the other members of the team without consulting them."

On the protests that have taken place, Holder added: "It [racism] is something that will probably be an ongoing discussion, probably way past our lifetimes. I think the greater message that could be taken for this entire experience is unity.

"Regardless of your race or religion, I think this is a situation for us all to unite as one.

"What has happened recently has definitely impacted the world, and the response from people around the world has been tremendous.

"We must acknowledge it. Protesting, and standing up for what you believe in, is noble and courageous - and something I would never disapprove of.

"I think it's a perfect time for people to really educate themselves on what goes on in the day-to-day experiences of people around the world, and make a change.

"Only when you educate yourself, can you have a better sense of what goes on around you.

"We must all come together; it's an ongoing debate, but equality and unity is my main takeaway from this."

The Windies arrived in Manchester on Tuesday as they gear up for the return of Test cricket, which has been affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.

Three players, Shimron Hetmyer, Keemo Paul and Darren Bravo, opted not to travel, but Holder says those who have feel "pretty safe".

"To be honest, I feel pretty safe. I must commend the ECB, they've been outstanding," he said.

"We had a chartered airline and arriving here in Manchester was pretty smooth. We just transferred directly from the plane through the VIP hall and then straight onto the buses directly to the hotel. We've had no real experience with anyone from the public.

"Everything so far has been rolled out perfectly and whilst it continues that way, I can't see much interference coming with regards to the series.

"Before coming here to England, we all knew what was being posed. We've all made a decision to come over here, not been forced, and we've done it because we want to be here, we want to play cricket.

"Personally, I'm happy to be playing some cricket, not many other nations are. Many organisations are taking pay cuts and we have suddenly got our opportunity now to make some money, so we have a lot of things to be thankful for and I think we just have to relish the opportunity and grab it with both hands."

The West Indies will play two Tests against New Zealand in November and according to Harper, there is no reason for a change in the captaincy.

“We have discussed a lot of things and all of those things (leadership) we discussed but I think at this point we’re not thinking of changing the captaincy at all,” Harper said of Holder.

West Indies have won seven of their last 20 Tests and are eighth in the ICC Test rankings. The team was beaten 2-1 in their three-Test series against England in July.

However, Harper said Holder remained the first choice captain since there was a dearth of leadership qualities not only throughout the ranks of the Test side but across the regional game.

“I looked at a lot of the four-day championships. I had the opportunity to see most of the captains on show and I think that there are some decent captains out there but there is also a lot of improvement that can be made,” he said.

“I think some of our captains need to know when to attack, when not to attack, how to defend and how to put pressure on the opposing batsmen and those sort of things. These are the areas we need to improve on.”

The Windies, who won the tournament in 2012 and 2016, will face Scotland, Zimbabwe and Ireland in Group B with the top two teams advancing to the Super 12.

"We've got a task to uphold in terms of qualifying for the main round," Holder said.

"More or less, we have to focus on the qualifier. Ireland, Scotland and Zimbabwe by no means are pushovers. We've got to take it as seriously as we possibly can and just make sure we get into the next phase of the tournament."

Holder, entering his third T20 World Cup believes there are positives to playing in the qualifiers for the regional side.

"I think it's good in a way that we're playing the qualifiers," he said.

 "West Indies teams of the past have proved that we get better as we go along. To have the warm-up phase of the tournament and then to go into the actual group stage after qualification, I think it's going to be to our betterment in the sense we get more cricket. The talent we have got - depth in terms of resources and batting and bowling - we've always been pretty athletic in the field, so I'm looking forward to that challenge."

The team will be looking to rebound from an abysmal 2021 T20 World Cup in the UAE where they got just one win in five matches, failing to advance from the Super 12.

The Windies have arrived in Manchester ahead of the planned behind-closed-doors Test series, which will start in Southampton on July 8.

They are the first international sports team to visit the United Kingdom since lockdown began in March amid the coronavirus pandemic.

West Indies' 39 members of their touring group, which includes 25 players, tested negative for COVID-19 prior to their charter flight from Antigua and are now poised to be tested again.

They will enter quarantine at Old Trafford, which will host the second and third Test matches and serve as their base to prepare for the opening encounter.

Shimron Hetmyer, Darren Bravo and Keemo Paul opted to withdraw from the touring party because of the pandemic.

But West Indies captain Holder was in a positive mood and aware of the significance of the trip.

"This is a huge step forward in cricket and in sports in general," Holder said, speaking before the team landed in England.

"A lot has gone into the preparations for what will be a new phase in the game.

"I’m happy for the support and well-wishes we have been receiving from our loyal and dedicated fans once it was confirmed the tour would go ahead. This has been a source of great inspiration.

"We have a fantastic group of cricketers, coaches, medical staff and support staff and I know everyone is eagerly looking forward to the start of the first match."

West Indies beat England 2-1 in the Caribbean last year but have not won a series in England since 1988.

Holder said: "There is expectation in the air that we will defend the Wisden Trophy and we will certainly put in the work and give it our all to keep hold of it."

Assistant coach Roddy Estwick was also optimistic about the team's chances if they can contain the England bowling attack.

"Three years ago, it was a very, very young unit," Estwick said of the team who lost the 2017 series 2-1 in England. "Now we've got seasoned Test players, we've got players with 50 Test matches.

"So I think once we can hit the ground running and get the preparation in, get some match practice under our belts, we can be a lot better.

"We've got youngsters coming through. If we can get scores on the board we can really challenge England because I know the bowling will be good."

The two are the only ones recalled from the players who opted not to tour Bangladesh in January. The West Indies swept the two-Test series with a set of players who have largely been retained for first Test against Sri Lanka.

As was announced on Thursday, Kraigg Brathwaite will captain the side, replacing Holder. Jermaine Blackwood will be his vice-captain.

“It is good to be able to put together a Test squad with a number of players coming off very good performances in their last series in Bangladesh. Very encouraging,” said Chief Selector Roger Harper.

“It is a fantastic opportunity to build on the good work that was done in Bangladesh. It is very important to continue the process of working hard, playing with great passion, playing with determination and a great desire to succeed. Doing that consistently will bring us the right results.”

The Selection Panel also named the squad for the CWI President’s XI to face Sri Lanka in a two-day warm-up match at Coolidge Cricket Ground on March 17-18.

Test squad: Kraigg Brathwaite (c), Jermaine Blackwood (vc), Nkrumah Bonner, Darren Bravo, John Campbell, Rahkeem Cornwall, Joshua Da Silva, Shannon Gabriel, Jason Holder, Alzarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Kemar Roach and Jomel Warrican.

President’s XI squad: Roston Chase (captain), Darren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks, Shannon Gabriel, Jahmar Hamilton, Keon Harding, Kavem Hodge, Shai Hope, Kyle Mayers, Shayne Moseley, Veerasammy Permaul, Anderson Phillip and Kemar Roach.

Following the conclusion of the President’s XI match Roston Chase, Jahmar Hamilton and Chemar Holder will remain as reserves for the first Test. Jayden Seales will remain as a developmental player.

The tourists ended the day 283-9 from 89 overs after the South Africa Invitational XI won the toss and chose to field.

Holder led the way with a swift 62-ball 57 including nine fours and a six while Da Silva ended the day unbeaten on 54 alongside Shannon Gabriel, who is not out on two. The Trinidadian wicket-keeper/batsman has, so far, faced 129 balls and hit six boundaries.

Roston Chase also showed solid form with 35 against two wickets apiece from Corbin Bosch, Irvin Modimokoane and Smangaliso Nhlebela.

The first Test against South Africa bowls off on February 28.

Scores: West Indies 283-9 off 89 overs (Jason Holder 57, Joshua Da Silva 54*, Roston Chase 35, Raymon Reifer 30, Corbin Bosch 2-17, Irvin Modimokoane 2-39, Smangaliso Nhlebela 2-71).

Joining Holder in making themselves unavailable for the tour are vice-captain Roston Chase, T20 captain Kieron Pollard, Darren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks, Sheldon Cottrell, Evin Lewis, Shai Hope, Shimron Hetmyer, and Nicholas Pooran. Fabian Allen and Shane Dowrich will be unavailable because of personal reasons.

The CWI Covid-19 policy allows any player the opportunity to decline selection because of health or safety fears, without the decision affecting their consideration for future selection.

The tour is set for January 10 to February 11.  It was only approved after recommendation by the CWI’s Medical Advisory Committee (MAC), who received a detailed report from a pre-tour visit of Bangladesh by CWI Director and Member of the CWI and ICC MAC, Dr Mansingh, and Security Manager, Paul Slowe.

It seems the precautionary measures were not enough to assuage the fears of the majority of the squad.  With 510,080 confirmed coronavirus cases and 7,479 deaths, Bangladesh is one of the countries hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic.  The country has, however, been hosting cricket tournaments under heavy quarantine restrictions.

The West Indies were one of the first teams to resume playing international cricket when they travelled to England in July.  The team then went to New Zealand for a series earlier this month. 

Barbados last won the title in the 2016/17 season and Holder believes that with a shortened season before them, they need to be ready to win consistently.

“We are really looking forward to the first tournament of the year. It’s great to be back and there is a lot of excitement in our camp. We are focused on winning,” Holder said.

“It will be important to hold our nerve under pressure and execute under pressure. The team that is most consistent always wins, and we have to look at being consistent and win for our country and our fans.”

Meanwhile, Red Force Captain Kieron Pollard believes his team is blessed with a good blend of youth and experience to advance to the finals and eventually win it all.

“I believe we have a very good team in terms of youth and experience and we can go that step further and make it to the finals,” he said.

“In the last few years, we missed out, reaching the semi-finals and being beaten, once by CCC and once by Leewards. Hopefully, we have all the energy and all the gas in the tank and go all the way. This promises to be a really good tournament, and I know players will be aiming to impress and improve their careers.”

Both captains are among several West Indies stars set to participate in this year’s tournament.

In addition to Holder and Pollard, players such as Roston Chase (Barbados Pride), Shimron Hetmyer (Guyana Jaguars), Sheldon Cottrell (Jamaica Scorpions), Hayden Walsh Jr (Leeward Islands Hurricanes), Nicholas Pooran (Trinidad and Tobago Red Force) and Andre Fletcher (Windward Islands Volcanoes) have signalled their participation in the tournament.

Whilst COVID-19 related constraints mean that 2019-2020 Champions, the West Indies Emerging Players, are unable to defend their title, eight of those talented young winners from the 2019 tournament have found spots in the competing franchise teams, including Keon Harding, Dominic Drakes and Justin Greaves (Barbados Pride), Kevin Sinclair (Guyana Jaguars), Ashmead Nedd (Leeward Islands Hurricanes), Jayden Seales (Trinidad and Tobago Red Force) as well as, Kimani Melius and Roland Cato (Windward Islands Volcanoes).

Full squads:

Barbados Pride: Jason Holder (Captain), Joshua Bishop, Shamarh Brooks, Jonathan Carter, Roston Chase, Dominic Drakes, Jonathan Drakes, Justin Greaves, Keon Harding, Chemar Holder, Akeem Jordan, Nicholas Kirton, Zachary McCaskie, Ashley Nurse, Tevyn Walcott; Dexter Toppin (Head Coach)

Guyana Jaguars: Leon Johnson (Captain), Shimron Hetmyer (Vice-Captain), Christopher Barnwell, Anthony Bramble, Asad Fudadin, Chanderpaul Hemraj, Tevin Imlach, Keon Joseph, Ramaal Lewis, Gudakesh Motie, Akshaya Persaud, Kemol Savory, Romario Shepherd, Kevin Sinclair, Nial Smith; Esuan Crandon (Head Coach)

Jamaica Scorpions: Rovman Powell (Captain), Derval Green (Vice-Captain), Fabian Allen, Dennis Bulli, Sheldon Cottrell, Javel Glenn, Brandon King, Andre McCarthy, Jamie Merchant, Romaine Morris, Paul Palmer, Jeavor Royal, Odean Smith, Aldaine Thomas, Oshane Thomas; Andre Coley (Head Coach)

Leeward Islands Hurricanes: Devon Thomas (captain), Montcin Hodge (Vice-Captain), Colin Archibald, Sheno Berridge, Quinton Boatswain, Keacy Carty, Nino Henry, Amir Jangoo, Nitish Kumar, Jeremiah Louis, Ashmead Nedd, Kieran Powell, Ross Powell, Hayden Walsh Jr, Terance Warde; Stuart Williams (Head Coach)

Trinidad and Tobago Red Force: Kieron Pollard (Captain), Darren Bravo (Vice-Captain), Akeal Hosein, Imran Khan, Evin Lewis, Jason Mohammed, Sunil Narine, Kjorn Ottley, Khary Pierre, Nicholas Pooran, Anderson Phillip, Denesh Ramdin, Ravi Rampaul, Jayden Seales, Lendl Simmons; David Furlonge (Head Coach)

Windward Islands Volcanoes: Sunil Ambris (Captain), Andre Fletcher (Vice-Captain), Alick Athanaze, Roland Cato, Keron Cottoy, Kenneth Dember, Larry Edward, Ryan John, Ray Jordan, Desron Maloney, Obed McCoy, Preston McSween, Kimani Melius, Emmanuel Stewart, Kevin Stoute; Andrew Richardson (Head Coach)

For Holder, he former West Indies Test and One-Day captain, it would be his first regional first-class match in four years. The 32-year-old, who is also a former Barbados captain, will be joined by fellow international stars Roach and Raymon Reifer in the Vasbert Drakes-coached 12-man squad led by current Test skipper Kraigg Brathwaite.

Holder’s red-ball career has come under the spotlight in recent times, after he turned down a central retainer from Cricket West Indies, and also opted out of the two-Test tour of Australia, to focus on franchise Twenty20 cricket.

However, he did declare that he had intentions of quitting the longest format, and, as such, should be included in this summer's visit to England for the three-Test series.

Holder’s last regional first class game was against Harpy Eagles at Providence during the 2020 season which was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Roach, too, will be turning out in his first regional first-class game in four years, having also last featured in the 2020 season.

The 35-year-old is the fifth highest wicket-taker in Tests for West Indies with 270 scalps and has also taken 523 first class wickets from 162 matches.

Holder and Roach will certainly add impetus to the Pride's bowling attack which comprises Chemar Holder, Jair McAllister and Shaquille Cumberbatch.

Barbados are currently third in the championship standings on 43.8 points, almost two points behind second-placed Leeward Islands Hurricanes (45.6), with unbeaten Windward Islands Volcanoes top with 62.2 points.

SQUAD – Kraigg Brathwaite (captain), Shaquille Cumberbatch, Shane Dowrich, Chaim Holder, Chemar Holder, Jason Holder, Jair McAllister, Zachary McCaskie, Raymon Reifer, Kemar Roach, Jomel Warrican, Jonathan Drakes, Shian Brathwaite

Holder, who was a part of the team’s recent tour of India, will be rested for both the three-match ODI and Twenty20 series against Ireland.  The player will also be unavailable for his regional team Barbados in the upcoming four-day competition fixtures.

“Jason will be rested during the Ireland series and will be unavailable for Barbados until the end of the series against Sri Lanka in February. He will then be assessed coming out of the SL series and a decision made and communicated on what his regional workloads will be for the later rounds of the 4-day competition,” CWI Director of Cricket Jimmy Adams told Barbados Today.

With a busy 2020 coming up, which will includes the team’s defense of the T20 World title, another player targeted for load management is fast bowler Kemar Roach.

The bowler is not in the Barbados team for the opening match against Windward Islands Volcanoes in St. Vincent following a request from Cricket West Indies (CWI) that he plays six of the maximum ten matches.

“We see the need to manage Kemar and Jason’s workloads to get the best out of them for 2020," Adams explained.

The West Indies captain was contracted by the Sunrisers Hyderabad in September to replace Australia’s Mitchell Marsh, who injured his ankle in SRH’s first match of the 2020 IPL season and was ruled out for the entire season.

The 28-year-old Barbadian repaid SRH’s faith in him on Thursday when he took three wickets and was involved in four dismissals in his team’s emphatic eight-wicket victory over the Rajasthan Royals in Dubai.

The former West Indies fast bowler speaking on T20 Timeout believes it was Holder’s CPL form that has seen him playing in the IPL for the first time since he played for the Kolkata Knight Riders in 2016.

“What catapulted him back into the West Indies T20 side was last year’s CPL where he picked up 11 or 12 wickets in the Power Play because he swings the ball, he has nice bounce and he was particularly impressive in that phase of the game,” said Bishop, who said his batting also played a role.

“He is not as good at the back end of the innings, and in this year’s CPL he was scoring a lot of runs relative to the Barbados Tridents, who he captained again.

“He looked like a batsman (when compared to most of them) apart from Kyle Mayers.”

Bishop believes Holder’s overall game has been improving.

“He is getting better. I wouldn’t say he is a standout T20 player but I can understand why they (SRH) went for him.”

Shannon Gabriel nabbed the first three wickets, Holder the next six including England counterpart Ben Stokes for a team-best 43, and Gabriel grabbed the last wicket to finish with 4-62.

England, at 174-9, didn’t look like reaching 200 but Dom Bess hit 31 not out and shared 30 with fast bowler James Anderson, the last man out.

An early tea was taken with England set to repay the West Indies' batting lineup in ideal bowling conditions.

Gabriel and Holder reduced England to 106-5 at lunch.

But the break enlivened Stokes and Jos Buttler, who came out punchy and riding some luck.

Stokes, dropped on 14 by Kemar Roach on the run, was dropped again on 32 off Roach to a simpler chance by Shamarh Brooks at extra cover.

Stokes and Buttler combined for 67 and 13 boundaries in the empty arena until Holder drew Stokes forward on 43 and earned an edge behind.

Buttler, on 35, was out to another seaming ball by Holder and a low, one-handed catch behind by wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich.

When Jofra Archer was out for a duck after a West Indies review showed his front pad blocked his leg stump, Holder had his fifth wicket and taken 3-1 in 14 balls.

The five-wicket haul was Holder’s seventh, and sixth in his last 10 tests.

Mark Wood on 5 slashed at Holder straight to Shai Hope at gully, and Holder would finish the innings with career-best figures of 20-6-42-6.

Bess and Anderson gave England a little lift to get past 200, but Anderson lost his off stump trying to defend Gabriel, who removed opener Rory Burns (30) and Joe Denly (18) in the morning.

The attacking-minded Mayers burst on the scene with a stroke-filled 210 unbeaten in the first Test against Bangladesh, in February of this year.  However, against Sri Lanka last month, the player also had a good turn with the ball.  Not only extracting movement from a placid pitch but taking four wickets in the process, with just a short spell.

The display prompted some pundits to suggest that the player had the ability to become a dependable all-rounder for the squad if he could improve his overall fitness.

Bowling would not have been entirely new to Mayers, however, as he was at one point considered more of a bowling all-rounder, having claimed 71 wickets in 30 first-class matches at an average of 21.54.  Having displayed more prowess with the bat in recent months, Mayers is convinced that he can do both at the highest level in the mold of former West Indies captain Jason Holder, or England’s Ben Stokes, the world’s top-ranked all-rounders.

“I have it in me to do it.  I just have to become fitter,” Mayer’s told SportsMax’s The Commentators podcast.

“I just started Test cricket and people think watching it on tv, it’s very easy, it’s very hard.  I will always say that, and I will always let young people coming up know that if you want to play Test cricket you need to work very hard,” he added.

“Preparation is key for me to be up there with Jason.  It will take that hard work, but I believe I can do it for sure.  Having number one and maybe number two in the world can’t be so bad.  If they had two of the world’s best all-rounders the guys would be happy.”

 Catch full interview in the Podcast below

Despite some amount of debate surrounding the selection of the inexperienced player, the performance of the 19-year-old Seales was one of the few bright sparks in a wretched series for the regional team.

The teenager, who came into the line-up with the absence of Shannon Gabriel due to injury, claimed figures of 3 for 34 and overall figures of 3 for 75.  He did not get the chance at a second innings as South Africa only needed to bat once.  Prior to his debut, Seales had only played one First-Class match. 

While admitted to being delighted by the young bowler’s potential, Holder recommends caution as a necessity in ensuring he lives up to his full potential.

“I’m very excited for Jayden.  It was special to see not just the way he bowled but also the way the team rallied around him,” Holder told members of the media on Tuesday.

“I was actually commenting on his first Test wicket and everyone was saying they really enjoyed how he got around it.  I honestly felt like I was taking my first wicket when Jayden got his wicket,” he added.

“The most impressive thing for me about Jayden's debut is the sustenance of his consistency.  He was there, thereabouts nagging.  He asked tons of questions at multiple stages of the game, which is impressive for a 19-year-old.”

The sky’s the limit for him if he can just stay fit.  I just hope that we manage him well.  When I say manage him well, we still have to understand that for Jayden that’s his second first-class game, first Test match.  The body will take a little bit of time to adjust to the workload and we have to be careful not to bowl him to the ground.  I think sometimes we get excited by a young prospect like Jayden and throw him into all formats.  I would like to see a gradual build-up with him.”

Allen took figures of 1-13 as the West Indies restricted Sri Lanka to 131 for 4 despite an unbroken fifth-wicket stand of 85 between Dinesh Chandimal, who made 54 and Ashan Bandara who was unbeaten on 44.

Allen, who was also outstanding in the field, taking a blinder off his own bowling and saved several runs fielding in the outfield, then, with the West Indies needing 20 runs from the last two overs, smashed three sixes in the penultimate over of the match to propel the West Indies to victory.

"I prepare for everything, including bowling in the Powerplay. I just backed myself and executed,” Allen said afterwards. The pitch is very slow, so I just needed to execute my plans.”

He said he backed his team to win despite their struggles against the Sri Lankan spinners, who once again, troubled the West Indies batsman getting five of the seven West Indies wickets to fall.

However, admitting his own struggles, he revealed the plan concocted between Jason Holder and himself that helped the West Indies over the line. Like the other batsmen before him, Allen had trouble reading Hasaranga de Silva’s spin, especially the googly that he uses quite liberally.

Recognizing that weakness, he hatched a plot with the West Indies Test captain.

“I told Jason Holder that I'm not comfortable batting against Hasaranga, so I told him to bat him out and I'll be finishing. I just backed myself in the end. It was a good performance overall."

Not only did Holder bat out the over, but he also took advantage of a rare no-ball from the Sri Lanka spinner, smashing his ‘free-hit’ delivery for six which reduced the West Indies’ task of 27 from 18 balls, to 20 from 12.

In the next over bowled by Akila Dananjaya, Allen took care of the rest.

The 29-year-old, who made his debut for the West Indies in 2013, has been an ever-present in the regional team.  Since 2014, Holder, who has been both ODI and Test captain, has been on a retainer contract with Cricket West Indies (CWI), which gives the regional team priority in many instances.

It has meant the sought-after player has perhaps been unable to ply his trade in some of the cash-rich cricket competitions around the globe, as they, at times, have clashed with regional engagements.

“I could sit down here and safely say I’ve passed up a lot of money to play for West Indies. I could have been a lot more well off than I am. I consider myself really blessed because I’ve made a lot of money in my life for a guy my age…but I probably could have made a lot more but I’ve always had that desire to play for West Indies,” Holder told the Headstrong An Innings With…podcast.  The player was addressing the situation that arises when players are often forced between signing lucrative deals and representing the regional team.

Holder was replaced as West Indies captain by, Kraigg Brathwaite, in March, after the latter’s strong showing in the team’s series against Bangladesh.  Holder was one of several players who declined to go on the tour.  The all-rounder cited health and safety concerns but also quarantine fatigue, as reasons he did not participate in the tour.

While not getting into the specific instances to which he was referring, Holder expressed disappointment with the fact that he doesn’t believe that West Indies cricket has always been generous in their handling of players that have sacrificed a lot.

 “My disappointment, however, comes when players like myself give up so much to commit to West Indies cricket, and then West Indies cricket isn’t as accommodating as they possibly can. There have been a few instances where I’ve been very disappointed in how things were handled,” he added.

The 30-year-old was replaced as captain of the team, in March, before finding himself controversially left out of the 15-man squad for the team to last year’s World Cup.  Despite the turmoil, the player has, however, managed to put in consistent performance, particularly with the ball.

Against England, Holder recently achieved a new milestone after taking career-best figures of 4 for 7 against in the ongoing series.  In two matches, he has taken six wickets and looked an assured presence for the team on the field.  The all-rounder admits, these days, he is in a different frame of mind.

“In the recent past…I’ve probably been overthinking it too much.  I’ve been working on some things technically as well from both the batting and bowling standpoint.  Honestly speaking, I would have studied it a little too much in the game and not been as clear as I wanted to be,” Holder told members of the media on Tuesday.   

“So, I’ve tried to iron out a few things mentally and trying to be a lot more focused and committed to what I want to do on a given day and try not to focus on just having a perfect technique,” he added.

The former captain believes it has been a difficult period for the entire group.

“There’s been a lot on my mind in the last year.  I’m just trying to find ways to shut some of it out and try to narrow in and focus on what’s needed.  I think the group has that challenge as well, we are working hard.  Anybody that says we are not working hard enough, I would always challenge that, but there is a lot more to cricket and sport than just working hard.”

In addressing recent criticism aimed in his direction by legendary fast bowler Sir Andy Roberts, Holder insisted he respected the former players a great deal.  He, however, believes a great deal more could be achieved with a direct dialogue between the past and present players.

Rose, who is also well-known for pulling no punches in his analysis, agreed with the captain’s assessment.

“We’re all passionate about the game and we are all disappointed in the performance of West Indies cricket, but it seems as if some of the past players live to see the guys fail,” Rose told the Mason and Guest radio program.

“We should be supporting the guys.  Give them a call, send them a text message.  Give them a few words of encouragement,” he added.

“When I used to play Malcolm Marshall was my coach and I was honoured to be a part of that team.  So, I would always try to impress as a fast bowler, impress the great Malcolm Marshall.  I think if some of these past players would pick up their phones and send a message or words of encouragement to these guys, I think it would play a big part (in their development).”