Tall and smart, Jason Holder tweaks the Caribbean pace image – Hindustan Times

Jason Holder stands at 6 feet 7 inches, but is far from the archetypal Caribbean fast bowler who thrives on speed. He comes from Barbados, an island that produced two bowlers who scored high on the pace allied to menace quotientMalcolm Marshall and Joel Garner.

But Holder is all about a disciplined line and length, and movement. A bit underrated, he has been effective though. He provided fresh proof of his brand of bowling at his home ground Bridgetown on Sunday evening.

Holder has been trying hard to prove to teammates his value in T20 cricket. Not being picked in the original 2021 T20 World Cup squad hurt him. He was only added as an injury replacement for left-arm pacer Obed McCoy.

The tournament in the UAE proved a disaster as West Indies, the holders, crashed out in the group stage. A 3-0 T20I series rout in Pakistan and a 2-1 ODI series defeat to Ireland added to their woes.

The 3-2 series win over England achieved on Sunday after a 17-run win in the final game thus couldnt have come at a better time. Holder chose his Kensington Oval to deliver a Player-of-the-Match performance, finishing the game with four wickets in four balls for the first hat-trick by a West Indies bowler in T20 cricket. It is only the fourth time in mens T20Is that a bowler has taken four wickets off successive deliveries.

In the five-game series against England, former Windies skipper Holder was extra motivated. In an earlier interview to his IPL side Sunrisers Hyderabads website, he had opened up about the heavy disappointment at not being picked in the original West Indies squad. The England series was an opportunity to make a point.

The all-rounder registered his career-best bowling figures, claiming four wickets for seven runs to finish with 5/27 runs, for a series haul of 15 wickets. He contributed with the bat in the fourth game, scoring a 24-ball 36 batting at No 5. He was named the Player-of-the-Series.

Theres a lot of hard work. An area I need to improve is my death bowling and variations. Im improving in the nets and the captain has the confidence in me. That does a lot for my confidence. People are seeing what I can do and giving me the responsibility. I feel really good about my role; Ill pass on the peripheral noise. Every time I step on the field, it's about what I can deliver for the team. Full confidence and thanks to the management staff for giving me this role, Holder said in his post-match interview.

Cricketers from the Caribbean islands and Guyana that constitute the West Indies side are among the most sought after in T20 cricket. Power-hitting and some spin talent perfectly fit the format. They performed poorly at the last T20 World Cup but it is usually very difficult to break into their national side. Though he was in the squad, Holder didnt get to play a game during their victorious 2016 T20 World Cup campaign in India.

The gentle giants performance against England would have caught the attention of IPL franchises as they strategise for the big auction to be held in a fortnight. Sunrisers Hyderabad for one are sure to go for him. He proved his value to the IPL side in the last two editions after being signed in 2020. He picked 14 wickets in seven games that season, following it up with 16 scalps in eight games in 2021.

The SRH break gave him the platform to prove his abilities to his compatriots. He was playing IPL for the first time since turning out for Kolkata Knight Riders in 2016. Talking about it, he told the SRH website: It was just a sense of relief (to get the phone call from SRH). It was like being given a new life, not being in the fray and then being given the opportunity.

Holder started his cricket at the famous Empire Cricket Club in Barbados, home to the West Indies legend, the late Sir Everton Weekes. Though he doesnt generate pace, he uses his height to good effect. As he extracts bounce from a good length, batsmen struggle to put him away. No wonder his bowling hero is the West Indies legend from Antigua, Curtly Ambrose. Ambrose played in a way, just stingy, mean. He was one of those guys who (even if) would not practice for four weeks, pick up a ball put the ball right on the spot where he wants to land on.

In Sundays game, it boiled down to England needing 20 runs in the last over with four wickets in handleft-arm spinner Akeal Hosein had taken 4/30when captain Kieron Pollard handed the ball to Holder. He began with a no-ball for two runs before removing Chris Jordan with his second ball. He had the set Sam Billings caught at midwicket off the third delivery and completed the hat-trick when Adil Rashid skied to deep square-leg for a first-ball duck. It was four in four when Saqib Mahmood played on to the stumps.

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Tall and smart, Jason Holder tweaks the Caribbean pace image - Hindustan Times