Michael Holding
Encyclopedia
Michael Anthony Holding (born 16 February 1954) is a former West Indian cricket
er. One of the fastest bowlers ever to play Test cricket, he was nicknamed 'Whispering Death' by umpires due to his quiet approach to the bowling crease. Holding was an outstanding athlete as a teenager and used skills acquired from running the 400 metres
on the cricket pitch
, with one of the longest and most rhythmic run-up
s in world cricket. His bowling
was smooth and very fast, and he used his height (6 foot) to generate large amounts of bounce and zip off the pitch. He was part of the fearsome West Indian pace battery, together with Joel Garner
, Andy Roberts, Sylvester Clarke
, Colin Croft
, Wayne Daniel
and the late Malcolm Marshall
that devastated batting line-ups in the world throughout the seventies and early eighties.
In June 1988 Holding was celebrated on the $2 Jamaican stamp alongside the Barbados Cricket Buckle
.
and is a member of the Sky Sports
cricket commentary team. During his First class cricket career, Holding played for Jamaica
, Canterbury
, Derbyshire
, Lancashire
and Tasmania
.
Holding was the bowler in what is often described as "the greatest over in Test history", which he bowled in 1981 in Bridgetown
to English batsman Geoff Boycott. The first five balls increased in pace, causing Boycott to have to react very rapidly to avoid being hit. The final ball saw Boycott clean bowled, to the great delight of the crowd.
According to an urban myth, during a Test match between the West Indies and England when Holding was to bowl to English player Peter Willey
, the commentator at the time, Brian Johnston
, described the action as "The bowler's Holding, the batsman's Willey" (a double entendre
, as 'willy' is English slang for a penis
). However Wisden
states that there is no record of Johnston or anyone else actually saying this (although a colleague of Johnston's, Henry Blofeld
, recalls the incident occurring during a test match at The Oval
in 1976.)
In a limited-overs international between England and West Indies on 26 August 1976 at Scarborough, Michael Holding's return from long-leg deflected off the nearer wicket and scuttled along the pitch to break the far one with Graham Barlow
and Alan Knott
, on his only appearance as England's captain, stranded in mid-pitch. The dumbfounded umpires, David Constant
and Arthur Jepson
, rejected the run out appeal for reasons which remain obscure.
A less amusing incident for which Holding is also remembered was kicking over the stumps in anger at an umpiring decision in New Zealand in 1979/80. The tour had gone poorly almost from the beginning: West Indies had just finished a long tour of Australia, and were perhaps resentful about having a tour to unglamorous New Zealand immediately afterwards (their leading batsman of the time, Viv Richards
, refused to tour). West Indies felt that the umpiring had been incompetent and against them throughout. After an appeal for caught behind was turned down, Holding turned and kicked the stumps in frustration.
Despite modest batting talent, he holds the record for the most sixes in a Test career for any player with fewer than 1000 career runs. He hit 36 sixes in his Test career, placing him at 32 in the all-time list. Remarkably almost a quarter of his Test runs came by way of sixes. Currently, Holding is one of the more respected cricket commentators in the world. His distinctive Jamaican accent and observations have proved popular wherever he is heard.
On 5 July 2008, Holding resigned from his post on the ICC cricket committee because he was unhappy with the ICC's decision to change the result of the 2006 Oval Test between England and Pakistan from a forfeited win for England to a draw.
Holding felt that Pakistan's refusal to play should not go unpunished even though they were not guilty of ball-tampering.
"I have just written my letter of resignation to the ICC cricket committee because I cannot agree with what they've done," Holding said while commentating for Sky Sports during a domestic match in England. "That game should never, ever be a draw. When you take certain actions, you must be quite happy to suffer the consequences.
"A lot of things are happening today that I don't want to be involved with, so I've moved on."
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er. One of the fastest bowlers ever to play Test cricket, he was nicknamed 'Whispering Death' by umpires due to his quiet approach to the bowling crease. Holding was an outstanding athlete as a teenager and used skills acquired from running the 400 metres
400 metres
The 400 metres, or 400 metre dash, is a common sprinting event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 . On a standard outdoor running track, it is exactly one lap around the track. Runners start in staggered positions and...
on the cricket pitch
Cricket pitch
In the game of cricket, the cricket pitch consists of the central strip of the cricket field between the wickets - 1 chain or 22 yards long and 10 feet wide. The surface is very flat and normally covered with extremely short grass though this grass is soon removed by wear at the ends of the...
, with one of the longest and most rhythmic run-up
Run-up
Run-up, also runup, may be:*Run-up , type of movement made by a bowler*Run-up , aircraft verification procedure performed just prior to take-off*The maximum height on land reached by a tsunami as it encounters the shore...
s in world cricket. His bowling
Bowling
Bowling Bowling Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule Bowling (1375–1425; late Middle English bowle, variant of boule...
was smooth and very fast, and he used his height (6 foot) to generate large amounts of bounce and zip off the pitch. He was part of the fearsome West Indian pace battery, together with Joel Garner
Joel Garner
Joel Garner , also known as "Big Joel" or "Big Bird", is a former West Indian cricketer, and a member of the highly regarded late 1970s and early '80s West Indies cricket teams....
, Andy Roberts, Sylvester Clarke
Sylvester Clarke
Sylvester Theophilus Clarke was a West Indian cricketer who played 11 Tests and 10 One Day Internationals.-Early life:Born in Christ Church, Barbados, Clarke attended St Bartholomew's Boys' School...
, Colin Croft
Colin Croft
Colin Everton Hunte Croft is a former West Indian cricketer. He provides expert analysis on the British Broadcasting Corporation's Test Match Special.-Cricket career:...
, Wayne Daniel
Wayne Daniel
Wayne Wendell Daniel played 10 Tests and 18 One Day Internationals for the West Indies.A hostile and muscular fast bowler, Daniel seemed assured of a long and potent test career when he, in partnership with the lithe Michael Holding and the brooding Andy Roberts, battered England into submission...
and the late Malcolm Marshall
Malcolm Marshall
By 1984 Marshall was seen as one of the finest bowlers in the world, and he demoralised England that summer, especially at Headingley, where he ran through the order in the second innings to finish with 7-53, despite having broken his thumb whilst fielding in the first innings...
that devastated batting line-ups in the world throughout the seventies and early eighties.
In June 1988 Holding was celebrated on the $2 Jamaican stamp alongside the Barbados Cricket Buckle
Barbados Cricket Buckle
The Barbados Cricket Buckle is a repoussé engraving on a belt buckle of a slave playing cricket in Barbados circa 1780-1810.It is believed to be the only known image of a slave playing cricket and the oldest known image depicting cricket outside the British Isles."That the belt buckle depicts the...
.
Career
He was a natural athlete as a young man. He is now a broadcasterPresenter
A presenter, or host , is a person or organization responsible for running an event. A museum or university, for example, may be the presenter or host of an exhibit. Likewise, a master of ceremonies is a person that hosts or presents a show...
and is a member of the Sky Sports
Sky Sports
Sky Sports is the brand name for a group of sports-oriented television channels operated by the UK and Ireland's main satellite pay-TV company, British Sky Broadcasting. Sky Sports is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland...
cricket commentary team. During his First class cricket career, Holding played for Jamaica
Jamaica national cricket team
The Jamaica national cricket team is the representative first-class cricket team of Jamaica.-History:The team's history lasts back to 1895, when they played three matches against a touring side from England led by Slade Lucas, but because of the distance to the other cricketing countries, Jamaica...
, Canterbury
Canterbury Wizards
The Canterbury Wizards are a New Zealand first class cricket team based in Canterbury, New Zealand. It is one of six teams that make up New Zealand Cricket and has been the most successful domestic team in New Zealand history...
, Derbyshire
Derbyshire County Cricket Club
Derbyshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the England and Wales domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Derbyshire...
, Lancashire
Lancashire County Cricket Club
Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1864 as a successor to Manchester Cricket Club and has played at Old Trafford since then...
and Tasmania
Tasmanian Tigers
The Tasmanian cricket team, nicknamed the Tigers, represents the Australian state of Tasmania in cricket tournaments. They compete annually in the Australian domestic senior men's cricket season, which currently consists of the first-class Sheffield Shield, the limited overs Ford Ranger Cup, and...
.
Holding was the bowler in what is often described as "the greatest over in Test history", which he bowled in 1981 in Bridgetown
Bridgetown
The city of Bridgetown , metropolitan pop 96,578 , is the capital and largest city of the nation of Barbados. Formerly, the Town of Saint Michael, the Greater Bridgetown area is located within the parish of Saint Michael...
to English batsman Geoff Boycott. The first five balls increased in pace, causing Boycott to have to react very rapidly to avoid being hit. The final ball saw Boycott clean bowled, to the great delight of the crowd.
According to an urban myth, during a Test match between the West Indies and England when Holding was to bowl to English player Peter Willey
Peter Willey
Peter Willey is a former English cricketer, who played as a right-handed batsman and right-arm offbreak bowler. In and out of the England team, he interrupted his international career for three years by taking part in the first of the England players' South African rebel tours in 1982...
, the commentator at the time, Brian Johnston
Brian Johnston
Brian Alexander Johnston CBE, MC was a cricket commentator and presenter for the BBC from 1946 until his death.-Early life and education:...
, described the action as "The bowler's Holding, the batsman's Willey" (a double entendre
Double entendre
A double entendre or adianoeta is a figure of speech in which a spoken phrase is devised to be understood in either of two ways. Often the first meaning is straightforward, while the second meaning is less so: often risqué or ironic....
, as 'willy' is English slang for a penis
Penis
The penis is a biological feature of male animals including both vertebrates and invertebrates...
). However Wisden
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom...
states that there is no record of Johnston or anyone else actually saying this (although a colleague of Johnston's, Henry Blofeld
Henry Blofeld
Henry Calthorpe Blofeld is a sports journalist. He is best known as a cricket commentator for Test Match Special on BBC Radio 4 and BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra.Blofeld had an exceptional career as a schoolboy cricketer, cut short by injury...
, recalls the incident occurring during a test match at The Oval
The Oval
The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval...
in 1976.)
In a limited-overs international between England and West Indies on 26 August 1976 at Scarborough, Michael Holding's return from long-leg deflected off the nearer wicket and scuttled along the pitch to break the far one with Graham Barlow
Graham Barlow
Graham Derek Barlow is a former cricketer and was a middle-order batsman for Middlesex and, briefly, for England. He was also an England under-23 Rugby Union cap,...
and Alan Knott
Alan Knott
Alan Philip Eric Knott is a former Kent County Cricket Club and English cricketer, as a wicket-keeper-batsman....
, on his only appearance as England's captain, stranded in mid-pitch. The dumbfounded umpires, David Constant
David Constant
David John Constant played 61 first-class cricket matches from 1961 to 1968 for Kent and Leicestershire...
and Arthur Jepson
Arthur Jepson
Arthur Jepson was an English first-class cricketer who played for Nottinghamshire before becoming an umpire. In addition to cricket he was also an accomplished football goalkeeper who played over 100 games in the Football League before turning his hand to management.-Cricket career:Jepson, a...
, rejected the run out appeal for reasons which remain obscure.
A less amusing incident for which Holding is also remembered was kicking over the stumps in anger at an umpiring decision in New Zealand in 1979/80. The tour had gone poorly almost from the beginning: West Indies had just finished a long tour of Australia, and were perhaps resentful about having a tour to unglamorous New Zealand immediately afterwards (their leading batsman of the time, Viv Richards
Viv Richards
Sir Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards, KNH, OBE is a former West Indian cricketer. Better known by his second name, Vivian or, more popularly, simply as Viv or King Viv Richards was voted one of the five Cricketers of the Century in 2000, by a 100-member panel of experts, along with Sir Donald...
, refused to tour). West Indies felt that the umpiring had been incompetent and against them throughout. After an appeal for caught behind was turned down, Holding turned and kicked the stumps in frustration.
Despite modest batting talent, he holds the record for the most sixes in a Test career for any player with fewer than 1000 career runs. He hit 36 sixes in his Test career, placing him at 32 in the all-time list. Remarkably almost a quarter of his Test runs came by way of sixes. Currently, Holding is one of the more respected cricket commentators in the world. His distinctive Jamaican accent and observations have proved popular wherever he is heard.
On 5 July 2008, Holding resigned from his post on the ICC cricket committee because he was unhappy with the ICC's decision to change the result of the 2006 Oval Test between England and Pakistan from a forfeited win for England to a draw.
Holding felt that Pakistan's refusal to play should not go unpunished even though they were not guilty of ball-tampering.
"I have just written my letter of resignation to the ICC cricket committee because I cannot agree with what they've done," Holding said while commentating for Sky Sports during a domestic match in England. "That game should never, ever be a draw. When you take certain actions, you must be quite happy to suffer the consequences.
"A lot of things are happening today that I don't want to be involved with, so I've moved on."