Former West Indies fast bowler, who is now a very popular voice in today's cricket commentary, has slammed T20 cricket, calling it a bane. Known for his upright and sharp commentary, Holding gave a scathing reply when asked as to why he doesn't do commentary in the Indian Premier League, which is one of the most popular T20 leagues in the world. West Indies, in recent times, have turned out to be a dominant force in T20Is. Their squad is full of match-winners who ply their trade in T20 leagues all over the world and they dished out truly dominant performances in the shortest format, winning the T20 World Cups in 2012 and 2016. Many tip their T20 success as being a revival in their squad, which have underperformed in the other formats. Michael Holding Gives Passionate Speech About Racism As Former Cricketer Discusses Racial Inequality (Watch Video)

“When you win a T20 tournament, that is not revival; it’s not even cricket! It’s going to be very difficult for the West Indies to get on top in Test cricket because of this T20," Holding reportedly said, adding, "The T20 tournaments around the world are the bane of the game. When you are a poor country and can’t afford to pay as much as England, Australia, and India, the players will go on to play T20. That’s where West Indies and others are getting hit."

In a short and concise response, Holding explained why he doesn't do IPL commentary. "I only commentate on cricket," he said. A lot of cricketers from the West Indies have turned out to be star performers in T20 cricket all across the globe and Holding offered to explain this, saying, "When you are earning 600,000 or 800,000 dollars for six weeks, what are you going to do? I don’t blame the cricketers. I blame the administrators. They give a lot of lip service to Test cricket but all they are interested in is bringing in money into their cupboards… West Indies will win T20 tournaments which aren’t cricket; they won’t be a force in Test cricket," he added further.

Holding recently opened up about the racism that he encountered and wrote a book on the same, titled, 'Why We Kneel, How We Rise'.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 28, 2021 08:55 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).