MANCHESTER—Captain Jason Holder has no plans on keeping combative Marlon Samuels on a leash during the five-match One-Day International series starting here Tuesday, but has urged the experienced stroke-maker not to get carried away in his rivalry with all-rounder Ben Stokes.
While the West Indies chase an improbable series clean sweep to achieve direct qualification for the 2019 Cricket World Cup, the spotlight will likely also fall on the long-running duel between Samuels and England’s Stokes.
The pair clashed during their last meeting at the Twenty20 World Cup in India last year and many expect a continuation during the upcoming series.
“We’re just looking to play the game as a normal cricket game. Hopefully those two can stay out of trouble and we can have a smooth sailing series,” Holder told reporters here Monday.
“If it helps Marlon, I do enjoy it. If it doesn’t [help him], then I don’t. It’s a whole team we have here and we’re not focussing on those two going after one another. We’re focussing primarily on winning this series and what we need to do to win this series.”
The feud between Samuels and Stokes burst to life during the third day of the second Test of England’s tour of the Caribbean two years ago, when the Jamaican sent his nemesis on his way with a sarcastic salute after the Englishman was dismissed.
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