Port of Spain (Trinidad), Sep 20 (IANS) Former West Indies opener Philo Wallace has disagreed with the decision to appoint Jason Holder as Test captain and believes the responsibility will prove too much of a burden for the young crickter.
Wallace said Holder had displayed leadership potential but warned that the new responsibility was a premature move by selectors, reported CMC.
“Jason has shown good leadership qualities so far but I think to put him as Test captain at the age of 23 is just not right,” Wallace said on Saturday.
“He has not led Barbados in the PCL (Professional Cricket League) and to give him captaincy in the longer format without the experience is too much at this stage in my opinion.
“Jason has a tremendous amount to offer West Indies cricket but we must be careful that we don’t push him too soon, which I think is what is happening here.”
Holder was earlier this month named to replace Denesh Ramdin as Test skipper, adding to the responsibility of one-day captain.
At 23, Holder has played only eight Tests and 33 One-Day Internationals in a fledgling career, but is highly regarded among the Clive Lloyd-led selection panel.
Wallace said, however, that Holder’s appointment could also cause some disruption in the Barbados set-up where Kraigg Brathwaite was already captain.
“When you look at the Barbados set up, Kraigg Brathwaite is the captain of the team in the PCL. Kraigg, who was put as understudy to Ramdin remains the vice-captain and this is also puzzling to me,” said Barbadian Wallace, who played seven Tests and 33 ODIs.
“He is the captain of the Barbados team in the longer format, Jason plays under him and now he will play under Jason in the Test team.
“This puts the Barbados Cricket Association in a very interesting position and they will now have to decide whether they continue with Brathwaite as captain or remove him and put Holder.”
Holder will lead the Test squad for the first time when they travel to face Sri Lanka in two Tests starting next month.