|| Desk Report ||

West Indies Test skipper Jason Holder was left surprised to see England omission pacer Stuart Broad from the opening Test of the three-match Test series in Southampton.

International cricket saw its return to competitive cricket at Southampton through the first out of three-Test series between England and West Indies where the Caribbean side clinched the first match with a four-wicket victory.

However, the talk of the entire five-dayer match was veteran pace bowler Stuart Broad being axed from the first match of the Test, who has been a regular key player of the English in Test matches.

The Three Lions decided to go with the fast bowler trio of Mark Wood, Jofra Archer and James Anderson and left behind Broad out of the equation. After not being picked in the historic corona-period comeback Test, Broad let out his frustration on national television. Moreover, the veteran pacer had even sought assurances regarding his future with England from national selector Ed Smith.

“I was a little surprised England didn’t pick Stuart Broad. His record, particularly in this country, is outstanding and I thought they would leave out either Jofra Archer or Mark Wood,” said Jason Holder, who made the way of victory for the Caribbean team with his Test-best bowling figures of 6-42 in the first innings where England were folded for a paltry 208.

“But they put out a high-quality attack, that’s for sure. It was the first time we have played a Test against Jofra and he was eager to get going against us and we were eager to get going against him,” Holder wrote in his column for an English daily.

The right-arm pacer, who delivered an impressive performance with the bowl to steer his side to the victory, claimed a five-wicket haul in the first innings and enlisted his name on the Lord’s honours boards.

Speaking about his next big aim, Holder said that he wants to score a ton in England soil this time around. The all-rounder also heaped praise on his adversary Ben Stokes, who has got stand-in captaincy in absence of regular captain Joe Root.

“Taking six wickets in the first innings fulfilled a personal ambition for me because I’ve always wanted to take a five-for in England and dreamt about getting on the Lord’s honours board in this series,” Holder said.