Michael Holding Biography
Michael holding full name Michael Anthony holding is a former cricketer and commentator who played for the West Indies cricket team. He is from Jamaica, an island country. Michael is considered one of the greatest base bowlers in cricket history. His bowling technique is extremely smooth and fast, taking advantage of his height to generate a large amount of bounce and zip off the pitch. And in addition to this due to his silent, light-footed run-up to the bowling crease, he has been provided with the nickname “Whispering Death”. With Andy Roberts, Joel Garner, Colin Croft, Wayne Daniel, Malcolm Marshall, and Sylvester Clarke, he was also part of the West Indian pace bowling battery. In the late 70s and early 80s, the West Indies battery of the fastest bowlers overwhelmed opposing batting line-ups throughout the world. He played for Jamaica Canterbury, Derbyshire, Lancashire, and Tasmania at the time of his first-class career. He broke the record for best bowling figures, 14 wickets for 149 runs in a test match in 1976 which still stands in his test career. Michael declared his retirement from being a commentator in September 2021.
Early life and Family
Michael Anthony Holding was born on 16 February 1954 in Kingston, Jamaica. He was the youngest child to his parents Ralph and Enid Holding, the family lived in Half Way Tree Kingston. The family was passionate about sports. At a very young age, his father enrolled him as a member of the Melbourne Cricket Club in Kingston. When he was three years old, he was diagnosed with asthma but as he grew old and reached his early teenager, this had passed and he no longer needed an inhaler.
He led an active life and played sports in the scrubland and wooded areas which were near his home. Though his family usually watched the cricket at Sabina Park, he preferred to play cricket rather than only watch.
Career as a Cricketer
In late 1975 when West Indies embarked on a six-test tour of Australia, the fast bowler Bernard Julien was out of form and his place in the team was given to Michael Holding who debuted that year. He opened the bowling with Andy Roberts and his bowling speed was quicker than Jeff Thomson who is the fastest bowler in Australia.
In his domestic career, from 1973 to 1989 he played for the Jamaica team. In 1981 he played for Lancashire. During 1982-83, he played for Tasmania. Then from 1983 to 1989, he played for Derbyshire. And during 1987-88, he played for Canterbury.
In his International Career, he played for the West Indies team from 1975 to 1987. He made his International Test debut on 28 November 1975 against Australia. His last Test match was on 24 February 1987 against New Zealand. He made his ODI debut on 26 August 1976 against England. His last ODI match was on 30 January 1987 against England.
Career Statistics of Michael Holding
In his overall career, he has played 60 Test matches, 102 ODI matches, 222 first-class matches, and 249 List A matches. She has scored 910 runs in test matches, 282 runs in ODI matches, 3600 in first-class, and 1575 in List A match. His batting average is 13.78 in test matches, 9.09 in ODI, 15.00 in first-class, and 12.30 in List A match. His top scorers were 73 in test matches, 64 in ODI, 80 in first-class and 69 in List A matches.
Career After Cricket
After retiring from cricket, he owned a petrol station in Kingston which is titled Michael Holding’s Service Centre. There he employed several people who were a part of the Melbourne Cricket club of which he was also a member.
On the other hand, he never aspired to be a commentator but became one because of his friends with the producer at Radio Jamaica who usually invited him to comment on cricket. In 1990, he made his transition from radio commentator to television when cricket in the Caribbean was broadcast on television around the world for the first time.
In 1999, the ICC created BARC (Bowling Action Review Committee) and Holding was one of the founding members of the committee.
Holding’s Personal Life and Details
He first married Catherine Holding who was a Sri Lankan. They met while touring Australia in the late ’70s. They have a son named Ryan who was born in 1981. He is presently married to Laurie-Ann Holding who is an indigenous Antiguan. They have no children. However, he is also the father of three other children from three other relationships which include a daughter Melinda born in 1979, and another daughter Tiana born in 1988. Both of the daughter’s mothers are Jamaican. During the Covid-19 pandemic, he spent most of his time in the Cayman Islands.
He is 6 feet 4 inches tall. He is also known for his nickname whispering death. He is a right-handed batsman and right-arm fast bowler and he especially played as a bowler.
Books Written by Michael Holding
Holding has written two autobiographies. The first was Whispering Death which was published in 1988 before he retired from cricket and the second was No Holding Back which was written over 20 years later in 2010.
Recently in July 2021, his Third book Why We Kneel, How We Rise was published which was motivated by a positive public reaction to his comments.
Honour Received by Michael Holding
In June 1988, he was featured on the $2 Jamaican stamp along with the Barbados Cricket Buckle.
In May 2013, he achieved an Honorary degree and lifetime achievement award at the University of East London.
The final words
Michael Holding is one of the former fast bowlers of the West Indies Cricket team. He also worked as a commentator. He has also been a member of many committees. So overall this article was about his personal life and professional career as a cricketer and commentator.
