West Indies pace legend Michael Holding says the decision taken by the trio of Shimron Hetmyer, Darren Bravo and Keemo Paul to skip the tour of England in July should be respected given the health risk posed amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
All three players refused to travel to the UK for the bio-secure three-Test series starting July 8 citing family concerns. The decision to opt out of the trip has also been received well by Cricket West Indies (CWI) authorities, who have publicly said they won't be holding anything against the trio with regards to future selections.
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"I think it's unfortunate as far as West Indies cricket is concerned. I'm not going to tell anyone that they should be going to England because COVID-19 is around, someone may get sick or even worse," the 'Whispering Death' said on his youtube channel.
"But at the same time, I think it's unfortunate for the West Indies team because these guys have quite a bit of talent, and they'll be missed."
Holding also felt runs in difficult conditions in England could've helped left-hand batsman Bravo revive his Test career. "I'm sorry that Bravo, in particular, isn't going because Bravo, I think, needs to resuscitate his career. He started off so brilliantly, everybody thought he was going to be another great West Indian batsman."
"He hasn't really fulfilled that. I think the more cricket he can play now, especially for West Indies, the better chance he has of getting back on track and showing everyone the great player that he could be," he added.
On Hetmyer, the bright young talent, Holding said: "Hetmyer, again, I think he's a very, very talented player. I think people have heard me talk about him in the past. Again, I'm sorry that he's not going so that he can get more opportunity to express himself. But I ain't blaming them for not going."
Another former pacer-turned-commentator, Ian Bishop, backed Holding's view, saying players' decision to not to go to the UK is an understandable one in these times.
"You have to give players the option because it's a world health crisis," Bishop told the Trinidad Express.
"If a player decides he does not want to take that health risk, you can't hold it against him in this context. The players know they are taking a risk if someone who replaced them goes on to have great success. That's a chance you take," he added.
A group of 25 cricketers will arrive in the UK next Tuesday (June 9) from the Caribbean for the series to be played in empty stadiums with bio-secure arrangements in place for training and on-field action.
A three-week quarantine period for West Indies squad at Old Trafford will follow the first Test match in Southampton and the next two back in Manchester, marking the resumption of international cricket after COVID-19 hiatus.
(Inputs from PTI)
