'Was shocked when removed from captaincy,' says Jason Holder on his sudden sacking as West Indies Test skipperFormer West Indies Test skipper Jason Holder has said that he was shocked when he was sacked from the captaincy in March this year as the opening batsman Kraigg Braithwaite was named the captain in Test matches for West Indies.

"It was kind of a shock," Holder was quoted by ESPN Cricinfo as saying as the No 1 Test all-rounder admittedly is finding it difficult to go through the transition phase from being the leader to just a player. "Yeah, it's been difficult. I probably may not show it, but it has been difficult," Holder added.

Brathwaite led the second-string Windies side in their successful tour of Bangladesh where most of the first-choice players had refused to travel because of the COVID-19 concerns. CWI lead selector, Roger Harper, had said in March while selecting the side for the home series against Sri Lanka that the way Brathwaite led the side to win on an overseas tour went a long way in him getting the full-time captaincy for the side in red-ball cricket.

"It was kind of a shock. Yeah, still lost for words in regards to that, but I am not dwelling on it. I don't think it's something I should dwell on, to be fair. I am just trying to find ways to move on and transition back to just being a regular player. For me now, it's about showing a bit more of my character, and being a lot more… I would say outspoken. I am relatively outspoken, but just expressing myself a little bit more and having fun," Holder said, who led West Indies in 37 Tests from October 2015.

West Indies, under Kriagg Brathwaite, will be taking on South Africa in a two-match Test series that marks the start of a bumper home summer for the men in maroon that also sees Australia and Pakistan on their shores later in the summer.

Source : DNA India