West Indies' four-wicket victory in the first Test of the three-match series against England in Southampton was one of its most impressive wins under Jason Holder's captaincy.
The visitors showed good resolve, patience and a lot of skill with both bat and ball in difficult conditions, as they dismissed England for scores of 204 & 313 either side of 308 of their own in the first innings and then chased down an onerous target of 200 runs on the fifth day to their skipper's delight.
Holder said he was happiest with the performance on Day 4 when his bowlers kept at it without much rewards in the first two sessions and didn't let England run away with a huge lead, before inflicting the collapse thereafter.
"It was one of our best victories," Holder said in the post-match presentation. "Yesterday was the best day I had in Test cricket. All the bowlers toiled hard yesterday, and it was a hard-fought day of Test cricket. I don't think any team knew (which way it would go). We had been sat at home doing nothing. We had time to prepare, but you never know."
"We knew what was at stake yesterday evening. We knew we had 98 overs, and we had to go to 7 PM. Alzarri (Joseph) and I thought we would bowl till 6:30 and the other two would take over. It would've been difficult to push for a win if we didn't bowl extremely well on a flat pitch," he added.
Holder showered praise on the ever-attacking Jermaine Blackwood, the most unlikely hero of a Test win, who played an excellent knock of 95 in the run-chase.
"Blackwood was outstanding. Disappointing to see him get out on 95 but that's how he plays I guess. Jermaine always tries and is never short on effort, and today was his big moment," said the captain.
Holder himself took seven wickets in the game, including a six-fer in the first innings. But the 'Player-of-the-Match' went to Shannon Gabriel for the way he performed in his comeback Test, taking nine scalps in the victory at the Ageas Bowl despite not being originally part of the main squad for the trip. Gabriel, picked initially in reserves, had to prove his fitness after return from injury through performances in the two inter-squad warm-up matches to get the nod.
"I wasn't doubtful about my fitness. I knew I would play," he said. "I knew the work that I put in would take care of itself. I am still a bit stiff, but there are a few days to recover for the next Test match. Based on the fast bowlers' workload, they should be able to come through, depending on the recovery."
"However, the guys are pretty fit for the series. The guys were confident coming here after the win in the Caribbean last year, and we knew if we prepared well, we would be able to perform," Gabriel added.
(Inputs from CricketNext)
