The former West Indies fast bowler believes that had Pooran, and a couple others, had been in the West Indies team in England this past summer, the outcome of the series might have been different.
During the #Raisethebat series in England in July, the West Indies won the first Test in Southamption only to be comprehensibly beaten in the next two matches at Old Trafford and subsequently lose the series 2-1.
Darren Bravo and Shimron Heymyer had declined invitations to participate citing safety concerns but Pooran was never considered for selection. Holding believes that had those three been there things might have been different.
“They were competitive against England without, in my opinion, three of their better batsmen. Darren Bravo and Shimron Hetmyer chose not to come and they didn’t select Nicholas Pooran, who I think is very talented and should be playing Test cricket,” Holding said during an interview with Wisden Cricket Monthly.
“If they all played I think the series would have been a lot closer and, in fact, I have an inkling that West Indies might have won because runs on the board was their problem.”
Pooran has only played three first-class matches in which he has scored 143 runs at an average of 23.83. However, the player has excited fans in the shorter forms of the game, most recently for the Kings XI Punjab in the IPL where his six-hitting and stroke making triggered debate as to whether he should take his obvious talents to the longest form of the game. Pooran averages 25.68 in T20s and 49.05 in 25 ODI matches in which he has a top score of 118.
The ongoing debate has reached the ears of CWI Chief Selector Roger Harper.
In a recent response to questions from the media regarding Pooran’s selection to the West Indies Test squad, Harper said the player would be availed of a chance to prove himself in the longer form of the game during the upcoming tour of New Zealand set to run from November 27 to December 15.
In addition to the three T20 matches in which Pooran will be involved, and two Tests, the West Indies are down to play two first-class matches from December 3-7 and December 11-15, in Hamilton and Wellington, respectively.
Harper said the Trinidadian would be given an opportunity to play in those matches.
“There was a lot of consideration given to Nicholas Pooran; we are still looking at it and I am sure as we move forward, Pooran will have an opportunity as well,” Harper said. “He is in the T20 squad and he has expressed willingness to play in four-day games that will be available during the tour."
The Sussex quick is being eased back into action having struggled with stress fractures in his elbow.
His last Test for England was more than three years ago in February 2021, but he has since represented England in white-ball cricket, with his last outing coming in a T20 against Bangladesh last year.
In an interview with Sky Sports, Key confirmed that Archer will not play a part in England’s red-ball summer, when Ben Stokes’ side have Tests against the West Indies and Sri Lanka.
“The whole plan with Jofra is he’s going to play white-ball cricket for this summer and going into the winter,” Key told Sky Sports.
“Then hopefully next summer, when we play India and then onto the Ashes, we get him back for Test cricket.
“It’s a slow process to get him back for all forms.”
Although Archer will not be involved in Test cricket for England, the aim is that he can be fit for this year’s T20 World Cup taking place in the West Indies and the United States.
Key is also hopeful the fast bowler can be involved in the T20 series against Pakistan in May.
“Jofra has been out with Sussex in India for pre-season and bowled quickly out there, he bowled really well,” Key added.
“He has now gone back to the Caribbean where he’s going to play a bit of club cricket, all about getting himself ready for that T20 World Cup.
“He’ll hopefully play the Pakistan series, but it’s always fingers-crossed at the moment with Jofra.
“What we’re going to do is take it slower (rather) than trying to go too quickly so that we get him back for not just a short period but we get him for a long period.”
In 16 Tests, the soon-to-be 24-year-old Guyanese batsman, has only managed to score 838 runs at an anemic average of 27.93. His highest Test score is 93 that came against Bangladesh in November 2018. Since then, his highest Test score was 81 against England in Bridgetown in January 2019.
In the shorter forms of the game, Hetmyer has been marginally better. In One Day Internationals he has scored 1430 runs, averaging 36.66 and in T20s 1476 runs at an average of 25.44.
Notwithstanding, CWI Chief Selector Roger Harper believes Hetmyer possesses the potential to be so much more starting with the upcoming series against New Zealand next month.
“I would like to think that having missed the tour [of England], he’s hungry to get back and anxious to show what a quality player he is in all formats of the game, especially in Test cricket,” Harper said of Hetmyer, who declined an invitation to be a member of the West Indies team during their three-Test #raisethebat tour in July.
“I personally think Hetmyer has the ability to be one of the best batsmen in the world, in Test cricket as well.
“As he gets to understand the rhythm of Test cricket and the approach needed, I think he’ll show that; so this is an opportunity for him to showcase his skill and talent, and help the team to build big totals.”
The West Indies will play three T20 Internationals and two Tests in New Zealand from November 27 to November 15.
The promising right-arm medium bowler represented the West Indies U19 and played six matches and took eight wickets for four-time CPL champions Trinbago Knight Riders earlier this year. Notwithstanding, it was beyond his wildest dreams to be called by the West Indies selectors so early in his career.
“I was really shocked when I heard the news. During CPL there were talks that I was performing in CPL (and) I had a good World Cup. It was the last thing in my mind. I was just playing my cricket and then after CPL I got the phone call. I was very happy, but shocked,” said the player, who only turned 19 on September 10, during an interview with Newsday.
He believes travelling to New Zealand where he will rub shoulders with the more experienced bowlers in the Windies squad will provide him with an opportunity to learn from the best in the region.
“For me, it is just to listen to how they speak about certain things and watch how they carry about themselves, whether it be in training, recovery (and) during a game. Just to see how they operate and their way of thinking, and just learn from it as much as possible,” he said.
His thinking falls in line with that of Chief Selector Roger Harper.
“Jayden is a very talented young fast bowler, who is being given some exposure to the West Indies team environment on tour in an effort to fast track his development,” Harper said.
“He will have a tremendous opportunity to learn and grow as a player as he trains and practices with the West Indies Test players under the guidance of Phil Simmons, the Head Coach, and his coaching staff.”
Smith batted as low as number nine on Test debut and has taken every spot up to number three in the course of a prolific career. Now he will head the innings for the first time having publicly pitched to replace Warner.
The 34-year-old’s move will accommodate the return of all-rounder Cameron Green in the top six for the forthcoming series against the West Indies, with Matt Renshaw picked as reserve batter and Cameron Bancroft’s hopes of returning to the Baggy Green fold dashed.
Head selector Andrew McDonald indicated all parties view the switch as a long-term move and praised the former captain for embracing change after 105 Tests and almost 10,000 runs lower down the order.
“It’s selfless that someone who’s had such success in one position or a couple of positions in the middle order, that he’s willing and hungry to have a crack at something different,” McDonald told reporters.
“For someone who has achieved as much as he has over such a long period of time across all formats, it’s a challenge or an itch he’d like to scratch and ultimately for us, as a team, it’s something that fits.
“It provides an opportunity to slot Greeny into number four where he’s had success for Western Australia. Ultimately we are trying to pick our six best batters.
“The regard in which we hold Cameron and the way the rest of that batting order is functioning left us feeling we have someone we think is pretty talented who was potentially going to find it pretty hard to get any Test cricket in the next 12 months or so.”
Anderson claimed five wickets at an average of 85.40 in four Ashes Tests to spark more conjecture over his future after he turned 41 in July.
While Stuart Broad retired at the conclusion of the drawn series, Anderson had no such plans to walk away and Finn, who played with the veteran seamer during England’s successful tour of India in 2012-13, is confident his old team-mate will impress over the next two months.
“Jimmy is superhuman,” Finn said of the Lancashire seamer, who has 34 wickets and boasts an average of 29.32 from 13 Tests in India.
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“People have been anticipating he will retire for about seven years now and he keeps surprising people and performing.
“He didn’t have a fantastic summer last year, but I know from knowing him as a character that he wouldn’t be doing this unless he felt he could make a difference.
“I think a determined Jimmy Anderson, well managed, is someone who will be important to England, especially making the most of the reverse swing because he is an absolute master at that.
“He would have worked on his fitness, he would have trained hard, he has got the skills and has got the experience so I anticipate when he plays, he’ll be an important cog.”
India have not lost a home Test series since England’s 2-1 win nine years ago and Finn predicted this would pose the “toughest challenge” of the Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum era.
England’s aggressive ‘Bazball’ style of play has taken the cricket world by storm over the past 18 months, but eyebrows have been raised at their preparation for this series, which begins in Hyderabad next Thursday.
Stokes’ squad have spent this week in state-of-the-art facilities in Abu Dhabi on a training camp and will only arrive in India three days before the first Test. It led to former seamer Steve Harmison predicting a 5-0 defeat.
Finn added: “I think if someone had offered (former head coach) Andy Flower three days’ preparation before a Test series his head would have exploded.
“I think there are a couple of caveats: times have changed, clearly. We don’t even go to an Ashes and have three warm-up games now, like we did on my first tour in 2010/11.
“I do think we encounter problems with the warm-up games because on that 2012 (India) tour, we turned up for a game and they played six 70mph medium pacers and no spinners and it didn’t replicate what you were going to find in the Test matches.
“I think the changing landscape of cricket has just meant they thought their preparation was best served elsewhere and it’s very hard to question this management team because every time we have over the last 18 months or so, they’ve dumbfounded everything we’ve thought of their decisions.
“I wouldn’t be as vociferous against it as Steve Harmison was a few weeks ago. It’s less than ideal but I don’t think it’s absolutely critical.”
IG, a leading trading and investments provider, has renewed its partnership with the ECB for a further three years. Through the Net Gains Fund, IG and the ECB will commit £1 million towards initiatives in under-served communities by 2027, including building new net facilities in five English cities in 2024.
"I appreciate it has been over four years since I last played for West Indies but today I am announcing my retirement from international cricket," said the 35-year-old Narine who last played for the West Indies in 2019.
“Publicly I am a man of few words but privately there are a few people who have given me unwavering support throughout my career and helped me realize my dream of representing West Indies and to you I express my deepest gratitude."
Notwithstanding the announcement, Narine said he will end his international career by winning the ongoing Super50 league for the Trinbago Red Force. "I love representing Trinidad & Tobago, the country of my birth, and to add another title by winning the Super50 Cup will be the perfect send-off," he said.
Narine played 122 international matches, which included six Tests, 65 ODIs and 51 T20Is and was a member of the West Indies team that won the T20 World Cup in 2012. He has played for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League since 2012.
He will continue to play for KKR in the IPL, Abu Dhabi in the International League T20, Trinbago in the Caribbean Premier League and Los Angeles in Major League Cricket. He is also part of the Hundred men's competition with Oval Invincibles and also plays in the Big Bash League, Pakistan Super League and Bangladesh Premier League.
Williamson was unbeaten on 97 at the close with the hosts on 243-2 on a grassy pitch at Seddon Park in Hamilton. Opener Tom Latham was dismissed for 86 but Ross Taylor is 31 not out.
West Indies captain Jason Holder won the toss and chose to bowl first on a well-grassed pitch after morning rain washed out the entire first session.
When play finally got going after lunch, West Indies struck in the fourth over when Shannon Gabriel trapped Will Young lbw for four. Young had escaped being caught behind the ball before when wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich inexplicably pulled out of a catch after Gabriel’s rising delivery took the edge of the opener’s bat.
Notwithstanding the early success, the West Indies bowlers were not nearly as effective as they could have been. They struggled with line and in some instances, length which allowed Williamson and Latham to proceed relatively untroubled.
A vast number of deliveries were simply allowed to go by to the wicketkeeper.
Aided in part by the wayward bowling, Williamson and Latham posted a second-wicket stand of 154 before the latter was bowled by Kemar Roach.
Any hopes of further breakthroughs were quickly dashed however as Taylor and his captain put on an unbroken stand of 75 by the end of the day’s play.
The decision to postpone the tour came as a result of the uncertainty for the safe resumption of cricket in the United Kingdom, as well as international air travel.
As a result, it was a logically mutual decision to postpone the tour to a later date until the clearance is granted by the UK government. The proposed window for the likely staging of this series is now July until the end of September.
“We continue to be in regular dialogue with the ECB on when and how we might be able to rearrange the Test Series. Clearly playing in June is now not possible and we will continue our discussions with the ECB and other Internationals Boards on trying to find new dates,” said CWI CEO Johnny Grave.
“We will only travel to England to play the series if our players can be assured that it is safe to do so. Our respective Medical Teams are beginning to discuss how this series could be played whilst guaranteeing the health and safety of our players and support team. We will be as flexible as we can without compromising the safety of our team.”
The West Indies were scheduled to play the three-match Test series from June 4-8, The Oval, June 12-16 Edgbaston, June 25-29 Lord’s.
