Look up to MS Dhoni's captaincy for inspiration: Jason Holder

Jason Holder has had a tough time as West Indies ODI captain

While Jason Holder, the current West Indies ODI captain, didn‘t get much playing time during his stint with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in IPL 2013, he certainly isn’t complaining as he got to learn about the skills required to be a successful captain from none other than MS Dhoni in his time there. The 23-year-old added that Dhoni’s ability to remain calm in pressure situations was absolutely exceptional and something he would like to emulate going forward.

"MS is an influential figure. In true sense, he is a leader and I found that during my stint with Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League. As a captain, I have always looked upto MS's leadership qualities for inspiration," Holder told PTI.

"The manner in which Dhoni handles pressure is exceptional. That is the reason he has achieved so much while leading a team with players from different countries. There is so much to learn from him."

Holder wasn’t part of the recently concluded IPL season, instead helping the West Indies earn a 1-1 draw in the 3-match Test series against England with impressive performances with both bat and ball. While his primary role in the West Indies side is to pick wickets, he is also turning into a really effective lower-order batsman and brought up his maiden hundred in Test cricket during the series.

"I would only be too happy to be involved in IPL again but this time I had a different goal. I was trying to help the West Indies and solidify our position. At the international level, you will have good days and bad days but you need to have self-belief to perform.”

Talking about his first series as ODI captain, which came against South Africa in January in the wake of Dwayne Bravo’s sacking, he added: "During my first tour as captain to South Africa, my job was to assess the individuals. We needed to put some solid plans in place. I needed to understand how as a team we react to certain situations. I was an U-23 captain and the situations provided me with a challenging experience."

While Holder’s captaincy was impressive, he certainly didn’t have the desired results as they succumbed to a 4-1 defeat and then suffered a quarterfinal exit at the World Cup that followed.