Holder expects WI to be in top 5 by end of Test C'ship

Lucknow, Nov 30  West Indies captain Jason Holder reckons his side has a chance of finishing in the top five of the World Test Championship after their nine-wicket victory over Afghanistan in their only Test here.

Windies are currently ranked eighth in the ICC Test team rankings, however Holder felt his team will soon be at the fourth or fifth spot in the charts.

"I think by the end of the Test Championship, I don't see it being impossible for us to be fourth or fifth in the world," Holder was quoted as saying by the ICC.

"That would be a significant achievement in a two-year period. We've got some tough series coming up: we've got England, then South Africa coming to the Caribbean, then we've got New Zealand -- all good cricket sides. But I don't think it's beyond us to beat them. We've just got to make sure we keep building and developing. Once we do that, we can compete with any side in the world. A realistic target in two years would be to be ranked three or four in the world," he expressed.

While the one-off Test against Afghanistan was not a part of the World Test Championship, the Windies skipper said the experience has helped them improve.

"We did expect the spinners to play a heavy role in this game, but with the new ball we probably expected a little more from the fast bowlers," explained Holder.

"As the ball got older, I felt it did a little bit more. Their openers played well and pretty much saw off the new ball," he added.

Praising spinner Rahkeem Cornwall, who was the Player of the Match for his 10-wicket haul, Holder said: "Our spinners really came into effect with the harder ball, so I think it all worked out the way it was supposed to. Credit to Rahkeem (Cornwall)."

"He bowled an exceptional spell in the first innings and then backed it up really well in the second innings, supported well by the other bowlers," the skipper added.