West Indies veteran all-rounder Jason Holder feels the 16th over was the turning point in the first T20I against India at the Brian Lara Stadium, Tarouba, Trinidad on Thursday. Holder bowled a match-winning spell of 2-19 in his quota of four overs and played a key role in his team’s four-run win.
Holder’s spell halted India to 145-9 and the Windies were able to take a 1-0 lead. It was the 16th over, which turned the match on its head as India was in the driving seat with 37 needed off 30 balls with skipper Hardik Pandya and Sanju Samson unbeaten at the crease.
Holder bowled Pandya through the gate with a slower ball whereas Sanju Samson was run out as Kyle Mayers hit the bullseye with only one stump to aim at. Furthermore, Holder bowled a maiden and the momentum was shifted towards the home team.
Meanwhile, Axar Patel and Arshdeep Singh gave a glimmer of hope to the visitors with a couple of strikes but Romario Shepherd defended 10 runs in the final over as he nailed his yorkers to a tee.
Holder was awarded the Player of the Match for his superb spell as he was right on the money. The veteran medium pacer used the change of pace with guile to keep the Indian batters at bay.
Holder said in the post-match presentation that the break from ODIs helped him recharge his batteries and it was a much-needed break for him.
He said, “The amount of cricket I’ve been playing for the last three years, it’s lot. I try to find some passages of break, get some time off, refresh, and come back again. I think it (break from the ODIs) was needed. I was happy that I stuck with my plans. I wanted to make them work hard for their runs, didn’t want to give any free runs.”
The lanky all-rounder added, “It (16th over) was the turning point based on the fact that the game was coming down very close. They had set batters and we had to stay in the game. The guys really stuck together, it was a total team effort. The conditions played in the favor of the bowlers. We got early wickets, which is really important.”
The second T20I between India and the West Indies will be played in Guyana on Sunday.
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