HOBART—West Indies captain Jason Holder has defended the attitude and contribution of his senior players, following the side’s embarrassing innings defeat to Australia in the first Test in Australia yesterday, and believes a stronger collective effort is needed by the team in order to turn the series around.
Australia media has been critical of the attitude of the West Indies senior players, in particular, batsman Marlon Samuels, who they accused of appearing indifferent in his approach throughout the contest at Bellerive Oval. However, Holder said the player had been showing the right attitude off the pitch.
“I think there’s a lot of information shared in the dressing room,” Holder told a post-match media conference.
“Senior players pretty much get involved with players of the likes of Marlon Samuels — he has a lot of chats with most of the batsmen — and we have Jerome Taylor leading our attack having a lot of discussion with the fast bowlers so I’ve been supported there, by the fast bowlers and the senior batsmen.
“It’s just about putting a strong collective effort together on the particular day – which we struggled with in the past. We need to correct it going forward in this series.”
West Indies were nothing short of mediocre with both bat and ball throughout the game, as they tumbled to an innings and 212-run loss — their worst defeat to Australia for 84 years.
The Caribbean side’s batting collapsed in both innings, bowled out for 223 in the first innings and 148 in the second, to concede defeat about half-hour before tea on the third day.
For Holder, it was his third straight Test loss since taking over as captain ahead of last month’s two-Test series in Sri Lanka, and he said he was focussed on trying to break the losing trend which began before his tenure.
“No doubt results haven’t gone my way and it’s been tough times but I can think back and for a number of years West Indies cricket has been like this,” he pointed out.
“[I’m] not making excuses for anybody but at the end of the day it’s a situation most of us came and found ourselves in. It is for this current group to pick ourselves up and find a way to turn things around and the only way we can turn it around is by performances.
“Batsmen need to take the onus upon themselves and make runs and with ball in hand, bowlers need to do similarly by taking wickets, that’s the only way we can move forward.”
Left-hander Darren Bravo and opener Kraigg Brathwaite were the only positives coming out of the lopsided contest. Bravo stroked 108 in the first innings — his seventh Test hundred — while Brathwaite struck an attacking 94 in the second innings in a desperate attempt to salvage pride for the Windies.
As the Windies looked to regroup ahead of the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne, Holder said it was important the players drew motivation from those performances.
“I think we need to look at inspired performances like the way Darren Bravo played. He showed once he applied himself and spent time that runs could be made out there,” the 24-year-old all-rounder noted.
“Again, how Kraigg Brathwaite played in the second innings, a really fighting innings. He just changed gears at the end pushing for a hundred but unfortunately he didn’t get it.
“I think we just need to look at those inspiring performances, probably look back at performances where we have done well in the past and just try to re-live those moments into this Test series.”
