WI v IND | The wicket was good enough, we did not bat well, admits Jason Holder
Jason Holder admitted that their loss was down to their own poor batting display, and not because conditions were hostile for batsmen. Chasing a stiff target of 418 in the fourth innings, the hosts were reduced to 15 for five, and 50 for nine later, before succumbing to a whopping 318-run defeat.
Despite being major underdogs in their own backyard ahead of the first Test at Antigua, the Windies fared quite well for the most part of the game. It wasn’t until Rahane and Vihari stitched together a 145-run stand that the game started to slip away from their hands. Then, in the short burst before tea, Jasprit Bumrah and Ishant Sharma sent half their batting line-up packing to leave them on the verge.
“Tough game. We didn't bat well. We have batting issues to sort, have been going on for too long. The wicket was good through the entire game and we should have batted a lot better. Ajinkya got a hundred in the second innings, thought he played really well and everyone else batted around him. It was one of those surfaces where you couldn't blast people out,” Holder said at the post-match presentation, reported Cricbuzz.
The hosts went in with six specialist batsmen, two all-rounders, and three specialist pacers – a combination which skipper Holder continues to stand by despite the result.
“I wouldn't question the team selection. We played the same combination in the last series and we were quite successful. I think we only have ourselves to blame in terms of batting performance. We should have batted a lot better. We need to take responsibility as a group. Players have to own up responsibilities,” he said.
However, the 27-year-old was not one to shy away from taking the cap off to a devastating spell of bowling from Bumrah, who registered his best figures (five for seven) in Tests.
“Bumrah bowled really well. It was one of those spells which would have dislodged most of the top-order players. We got to be much better as a batting unit. We got to be better. Our players have done really well over there (Jamaica),” Holder added.
For now, it is vital that the Windies erase the nature of the defeat from their memory and carry the positives for the Jamaica Test starting from August 30.
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