MUMBAI, India (CMC):
All-rounder Jason Holder wrote his name into the history books on Saturday by becoming the first West Indian to take 100 wickets in all three formats of the game.
The 34-year-old Barbadian reached the landmark when he had Scotland captain Richie Berrington caught on the deep point boundary, as the West Indies began their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup campaign with a 35-run victory.
Holder has now captured 162 wickets in 69 Tests, 159 wickets in 138 One-Day Internationals, and 101 T20I wickets in 90 matches.
Speaking in an interview yesterday, Holder said he was humbled by the achievement.
“For me personally, 100 wickets in this format is a blessing, to be fair. I guess at the start of my career I wouldn’t have imagined this moment, being the first to take 100 wickets in each format of the game, but I take it as it comes.
“I’m very, very happy and I thank my teammates over the years, and hopefully I can get a few more,” Holder said.
Despite his landmark achievement, Holder said what was more important was the fact that West Indies secured two important points to start the tournament.
“First and foremost, to get two points on the board was key. It was a very crucial game for us to start the campaign really well. Credit to the boys, we played a really good game.
“I think we were challenged at certain stages of the game, and we came through in those tough situations, which are strong signs for the team going forward,” Holder said.
With the Windies set to take on England in a crucial Group C clash on Wednesday, Holder said consistency was key.
He said the fielding department was an area that needed urgent improvement.
“I think we ticked a lot of boxes in the first game. We keep challenging ourselves in each department, and we all know we can improve in each department as we go on in this tournament.
“But for me, just be consistent; consistent with our attitude, consistent with our bowling, and also consistent with batting as well. We’ve definitely got to touch up in the field; we’ve been letting ourselves down and dropping a few chances, so that’s an area we can definitely improve on as well, too,” Holder said.
“But all in all, I’m really happy with how we started, and I just think, for us, it’s really important to continue to build.”
