Holder suspended for slow Windies over rate

West Indies captain Jason Holder has been suspended by the International Cricket Council and will miss the second test against New Zealand starting in Hamilton on December 9.

Holder also has been fined 60 per cent of his match fee, while his players have been fined 30 per cent of their match fees, for maintaining a slow over-rate during New Zealand’s innings and 67 runs victory in the first test at the Basin Reserve in Wellington which ended on Monday.

Chris Broad, of the Elite Panel of ICC match referees, imposed the suspension on Holder after the Windies were ruled to be three overs short of their target after time allowances were taken into consideration.

In accordance with Article 2.5.1 and Appendix 2 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Players Support Personnel, which deals with minor over-rate offences, players are fined 10 per cent of their match fees for every over their side fails to bowl in the allotted time, with the captain fined double that amount.

As Holder had previously been found guilty of a minor over-rate offence during a test against Pakistan at Jamaica in April 2017, this offence constituted his second minor over-rate offence in a test within a 12-month period.

The charge was laid by onfield umpires Ian Gould and Rod Tucker, third umpire Bruce Oxenford, and fourth official Wayne Knights.

Holder has previous form around slow over rates. He was fined 60 per cent of his match fee for a slow over rate during the first test loss to Australia in 2015.

He also missed the second one-day international of a series against Sri Lanka in 2015 after West Indies were fined for a slow over rate in the opening match of the series, 10 months after a similar offence against South Africa.

Each format of the game is considered separately.