Has Jason Holder taken West Indies as far as he can?

MACHEL ST PATRICK HEWITT: There are few obvious candidates to replace the Test skipper. But that is not enough of a reason to continue to persist with him given his woeful record at the helm

The shelf life of a modern-day international cricket captain can be compared to that of an endangered species. Operating in a ruthless global arena where gaps no longer exist in a top cricketer’s schedule can make the job of captaining and carrying the burden of your nation a treacherous terrain to traverse.  

A cursory look at the different international sides sees Joe Root, Virat Kohli and Kane Williamson as modern-day exceptions to the rule. They continue to lead largely successful sides in the Test format after six years in the job but if one looks further afield no other example exists other than at the helm of the West Indies Cricket team. 

Jason Holder has been in charge of the Men in the Maroon since 2015 when he was surprisingly thrust into the top job at the age of 23. 

At the time of his appointment, then Chairman of Selectors Sir Clive Lloyd remarked: "We expect to get new thinking and new dynamism from him. Jason commands respect. He is a fine young man, very intelligent and he seems to get the best from the players because he is a straightforward guy. I think the players will warm to him. He has a young bunch of players and we feel he can guide them in the manner that is required for internationals."

Holder himself wasn’t yet an established member of the Test team and his appointment had very much come as a surprise. Denesh Ramdin, the outgoing captain, had recently overseen a 1-1 draw at home against England, so the move seemed unnecessary.

Five years later and following an - albeit predictable - humbling at the hands of New Zealand, the time has come to ask if Holder has taken this West Indies team as far as he can.

Only Clive Lloyd, Sir Vivian Richards and Brian Lara have captained the West Indies for more Tests than Holder which puts him amongst exalted company. Yet Holder’s loss percentage stands at 57 per cent, a record worse than each of his most recent predecessors Ramdin, Daren Sammy and Chris Gayle.

There can be no doubt that Holder the player has flourished with the captaincy, having reached the rank as best Test allrounder in the world as recently as a few months ago. Holder has quite literally helped the side win Test matches due to his individual brilliance. Likewise, it is well noted amongst many cricket pundits and ex-players that Holder is an ‘impressive young man’. 

^{If Jason Holder is stood down there is no outstanding candidate to replace him}

However, being an impressive young man does not equate to being a ruthless and victorious Test captain. Arguably at this juncture of his tenure and one year into Phil Simmons re-appointment as men’s head coach, valid critiques should now be made regarding the direction of the Test side.

As alluded to when he was appointed, Holder had a resounding mandate to mould and shape a then-inexperienced side in the ‘true traditions of West Indies cricket’. In the five years since, West Indies have succeeded in only beating Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, England and Afghanistan.

None of this actually represents an improvement on his immediate predecessors who were also able to lead West Indies to wins against those sides, Sammy being the notable exception who also oversaw a home series win against New Zealand.

Of course there are mitigating factors that Holder has faced as leader, namely a weak top six that seems unable to adapt to the rigours of international cricket combined with a lack of match-winning experience at the top level. Those arguments are valid but they should not provide a safety net from scrutiny. A captain must still live or die by the results under their tenure. 

They are not too dissimilar to when the decision was made to change the ODI captaincy to Kieron Pollard following four years of no series wins and a disastrous World Cup in 2019. 

Cricket West Indies are once again faced with the dilemma of making a left-field selection to help revive the fortunes and culture of the Test side. Pollard hadn’t been selected for an ODI in two years when he was made captain but he was recognised as one of the few, available players in the region with proven leadership credentials.

His appointment has led to the white ball sides now playing an aggressive brand of cricket built in the mould of Pollard’s approach to captaincy. 

^{Jason Holder has lost 21 of his 37 Tests at the helm}

In West Indies' most recent ‘Covid’ series, questions have rightly been asked about Holder's seemingly negative, safety-first approach. Whilst it is established that bowling is the better of West Indies two suits – the side seems wedded to the idea of bowling first no matter the conditions. This can hardly fill his brittle batters with confidence. Further to this, on too many occasions he has allowed games to drift when the side enters a mentally fatigued state, but these are the moments when he most needs to show leadership.

The intention here is neither to disparage Holder nor in fact blame him for the repetitive failures of the Test side, the root causes are well known and it is understood that no quick fix exists. 

But it does seem perplexing that Holder himself does not want to relinquish the role after five years. He may feel it is his duty to continue leading the side until someone else can be groomed but the mental toll of leading a failing side must be taking its toll.

There can only be so many times Holder can face the media and talk of the need for the team to improve in key moments before even he gets tired of the same clichés. The majority of the starting XI in England had been ever-present since 2015-16. The time for excuses has long since run out. 

Mike Brearley, perhaps England’s greatest-ever skipper, said of captaincy: "A captain must instil the will to win; which means both ramming home an advantage and clinging on desperately when up against it."

The question for Cricket West Indies selectors and Holder himself is do they or him believe he is still the man to do that? If any doubt at all exists then the lack of an obvious replacement for Holder should not be the reason to carry on blindly doing the same thing.

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