Jason Holder praises cast of supporting seamers after starring with six-wicket haul

The wicket of Ben Stokes – Holder’s third – after a stand of 67 between England’s stand-in captain and vice-captain Jos Buttler came at a pivotal moment, with the pair having struck 13 boundaries between them

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Jason Holder took the plaudits but he was typically quick to praise his fellow seam bowlers after they combined to dismiss England for 204 in the first innings at the Ageas Bowl.

Holder took six wickets and Shannon Gabriel four in a fine combined effort, though Kemar Roach and Alzarri Joseph also played their part in a terrific bowling display from the tourists, who then finished on 57 for 1, only losing the wicket of John Campbell who was dismissed by James Anderson.

“It’s a proud moment to take six wickets against England,” Holder said. “I know my role in this team – my role is just to contribute with bat and ball. Today, I was able to get some success. I think it’s on the back of a wonderful bowling unit as well.

“I must say, I enjoyed today’s spell. More so because leading up to the Test match, maybe I hadn’t got the overs I wanted to get under my belt, maybe that helped me to be fresh. I enjoyed the surface, I enjoyed the conditions.

“I hadn’t got a five-wicket haul here on the last trip and I really wanted to get up on the honours board at Lord’s. I guess we were scheduled to play at Lord’s, but then obviously due to Covid they had to shuffle things around and we ended up playing here at Southampton.

“One of the things I’ve always strived to do – particularly when I get the chance to play against England – is to score a hundred in England and to get a five-wicket haul in England. I’ve ticked one box so far, so I guess it’s now left for me to knuckle down and try to get a hundred.

“I think I’ve soaked it in already. I really want to make some runs. I’ve done a good job in the first innings so far, but my Test match is far from over. I’ve still got a massive contribution to make with the bat. That’s where my focus is going to be channelled now for this first innings as well. I don’t get too caught up with it – still a long way to go.”

The wicket of Ben Stokes – Holder’s third – after a stand of 67 between England’s stand-in captain and vice-captain Jos Buttler came at a pivotal moment, with the pair having struck 13 boundaries between them. Stokes had been dropped by both Roach and Sharmarh Brooks.

“It was a big wicket to get,” Holder added. “I thought he was looking quite set. We put down two chances and he was looking to make us pay for them. When I came on, I think his partnership with Jos was just starting to blossom, so it was important to break that partnership.

“I just wanted to be really consistent to him. He was pretty settled and he was pretty much countering the line that we were bowling by walking across or walking down. I was getting just enough movement to keep him a bay. I just wanted to keep him playing. Eventually, he got the edge.”

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