Pooran is a special talent – Holder

CMC):

Captain Jason Holder has identified Nicholas Pooran as a special talent and has urged Cricket West Indies to ensure the left-hander is properly managed going forward.

Pooran hit his maiden international hundred - 118 off 103 balls - on Monday as West Indies went down by 23 runs to Sri Lanka at the Riverside.

Holder said the 23-year-old's batting qualities made him an asset, and his continued development would be a boon to West Indies cricket.

"Once we look after Nicholas as best as we possibly can, we create an environment for him to learn and develop, and I expect big things from him," Holder said following his side's sixth defeat.

"He's got the talent, he's got the ability to change gears, he's very skilled and he can improvise. He's got pretty much every shot in his locker. It's just a matter for him to put it together more often than not.

"But I think we as a body, West Indies Cricket Board body, we have got to make sure that we can have things in place to continue to help these players to develop."

Pooran entered the World Cup with just a single One-Day International to his name, but has emerged as the batting leader with 309 runs at an average of 51.

No surprise

His hundred came on the backs of a 63 against England at Southampton two weeks ago, 40 against Australia, and an unbeaten 34 against Pakistan - the latter scores coming in Nottingham.

Holder said the Trinidadian's form had come as no surprise and urged him to build on the experiences at the World Cup.

"What I have seen here of Nicholas prior to this entire World Cup is nothing surprising to me," Holder pointed out.

"What he's produced here is exactly what we expect him to produce. Ideally, we want him to get better and we want him to improve, and he would only improve over a period of time.

"We have selected him for a reason and we give him full backing. We give him full confidence to go out there and play the game that he knows he needs to play."