India vs West Indies 2016: We've been inconsistent for a number of years, says Jason Holder

Against a lacklustre performance by the home side, notching up a Test win and a series win was quite comfortably achieved by Team India in St Lucia. At the beginning of the fifth day of the third Test, after rain had washed out almost a day's play, India's resolve to win the series once and for all seemed set. After knowing the outfield was slow, the team very cleverly relied on quick singles and fast running to secure a total high enough to defeat the home side. Although Miguel Cummins registered a six-wicket haul, in the end, this feat was powerless against the Indian batsmen. Unsurprisingly, Ajinkya Rahane was the top scorer for Team India after standing unbeaten on 78 in the second innings.

The difference between the two captains was quite noticeable. While Virat Kohli visibly encouraged and motivated his team, West Indies captain Jason Holder seemed to have given up even before the match began. With absolutely zero fighting spirit left in them, Kohli's cool and calm strategic ensured their ruin. Within the fifth over, both the openers stumbled courtesy Mohammed Shami and Bhuveneshwar Kumar.

The West Indies team needed a really solid start to build on a momentum but the quick collapse of the batting order showed this was not to be, “At the top, predominantly we haven't been consistent, not getting starts we've been looking for. In the situation, the batsmen at the top need to come to the party, be a lot more consistent,” captain Jason Holder said at the post-match press conference. The captain ran himself out at the later part of the innings.

The attacking side of the team seems to be inexperienced and is apparently not quite capable of playing together as a cohesive team which often leads to such collapses. Holder recognised this and rued the lack of consistency as one of the key issues he has with the team. “I have had the privilege to play first-class cricket and I've also had the privilege to play Test cricket and I can see a vast disparity between the two. It is a situation where many of us coming to international cricket and are trying to learn on our job. It is definitely not easy, but it is something that we are faced with and I hope the guys can learn quickly. Hope that our guys' bodies are accustomed to the workloads of international cricket because it is far different from first-class cricket,” he said.

“When you look back, in the first innings, we're in a very good position at one stage in terms of our bowling performance. But Ashwin-Saha stuck in, luck went their way, had a few questionable calls, fifty-fifty ones which went their way,” he added.

Holder does have additional responsibilities as a captain as it is his job to lead by example. It is said that a leader is as good as his team. Keeping this in mind, it might suffice to say that Kohli has a relatively easier task as the captain of the Indian Cricket Team than Holder does as the captain of the Windies team. “It makes it difficult for anybody who is going to lead a team when you're a bit inconsistent. India is in a position where they have consistent players. They have players who are doing well, so they can smile at the end of the day. For me, it is a situation where we've been inconsistent for a number of years. We've got some very, very young players, we're trying to build a side, it's going to take time,” he said. He realises the difficulty of the task ahead of him. At the same time, it is his duty to lead his team by example and so far, that has not worked.

On facing Ravichandran Ashwin, Holder said, “He is a clever bowler and he knows what he is about and he knows what he sets up to do. And he can set fields and bowl to them. That is, ideally, what Test cricket is about.”