Hindustan Times ST (Jaipur)

Need to be hitting the 300-mark consistent­ly in ODIs: Holder

- Press Trust of India sportsdesk@hindustant­imes.com

0-2 by India inside six days in the preceding two-match Test series, West Indies captain Jason Holder expects no let up from the formidable home team and said the visitors would be bracing up for a tough ODI series beginning here on Sunday.

“It won’t be easy with India playing some very good cricket at the moment. They probably are the best one-day side in the world. We expect a tough challenge from them,” Holder said at the prematch press conference.

“It’s a young side, a lot of unfamiliar faces. But it is an opportunit­y for them to showcase what they got.”

The pace bowling all-rounder said the challenge in the batting friendly Indian conditions would be to get scores of 300-plus consistent­ly.

“We have not really been able to get consistent scores in excess of 300 which is pretty much a par score and a benchmark in ODI cricket of late. We have spoken this in our dressing room. We need to be hitting the 300-mark more often than not and be consistent­ly doing it,” he said.

The conditions in India will aid a run feast and Holder said his side would have to target scores above 300.

“No doubt, conditions in India will obviously dictate a run feast. A lot of times you got to be able to set your benchmark, maybe 320. That’s something our batters really need to look at. Consistenc­y is one thing we need to look at, particualr­ly in our batting,” he said.

Holder will have the company of Marlon Samuels, the seniormost member of the side who will feature in his 200th ODI.

“He’s (Samuels) been around for a while. He is one of our better ODI batsmen. He has done significan­tly well especially in the recent past. He’s obviously got a wealth of experience and thrives on competitio­n. He is one of the most competitiv­e players I’ve ever come across,” Holder said.

GUWAHATI:Humiliated

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