It is as if because he is selected as a specialist he ought to be an expert, a Mike Brearley or a Dermot Reeve, overnight. For a short time - the honeymoon, he has called it, before Christmas in Sharjah - he might have been just that, so brightly did he lead and so well did the players respond. But still one presumed that he was appointed because the World Cup was 18 months away and that he had been identified as a natural who would grow into the job.
With the captaincy to consider his batting, which was so impressive against the Australians at the start of last summer, lost its way, and his bowling, which is handy at worst and crafty at best, lost the touch and feel on which it thrives. In fact, the decision he took to bowl himself in the dying moments of the second Barbados game earlier this year probably cost England the match and certainly cost Hollioake some of his confidence at international level. He was a cricketer 'starting over', as the Americans might say, and suddenly, unsuspectingly, he was on the wrong end of the critics.
Perversely, then, his captaincy success in Sharjah may mean that too much is expected of him too soon. It is particularly English to build up a man in order to knock him down and it is bewildering how often it happens in cricket, which is the ultimate game of inconsistency and surprise.
Certainly Hollioake must rediscover his knack of understanding in advance the moments of attack and defence. His tactical aggression is simmering at present because it is unsure of itself. But captains are dependent on the performance of their players. On Saturday at Old Trafford he was criticised for not going for the jugular by recalling Darren Gough to the attack earlier than he did. Yesterday at Headingley he went for the jugular all right, and correctly chose Gough as his cutting edge; Gough, who had bowled beautifully early on, promptly bowled two overs for 21.
In short, we must trust our leaders if they are to flourish, not tear them apart.
The truth about England's losses at the Oval and at Old Trafford is that South Africa were better with the ball, were better in the field and even though they did not bat well, managed to bat better than England. England were sloppy by comparison with their excellence against Australia last May and exposed for their indisciplined bowling and frail middle- order batting compared with their committed effort in Sharjah.
None of this means that England are a bad limited-overs team. Indeed, with much greater attention to detail and with more relevant selections I believe that they are able to win the World Cup. What they must do is play to strengths and respond to the conditions that they should know better than their opponents. It is a nonsense to leave Angus Fraser out of the team during an English May, especially with the hindsight of his fine bowling in the West Indies. It is equal nonsense to ignore Alistair Brown, who bats famously well for his living on these pitches and whose quick scores of even 20-odd, never mind the blistering 59 he made yesterday, give England the sort of kick-start with which few opponents can cope.
Attention to detail is a particular strength of the South Africans, who bowl exact lines to specific players, who ensure that keen fielders - such as Jonty Rhodes - are placed where the ball is most hit and who have the knack of closing out teams who threaten revival. In short they are not flashy, they are efficient and consistent. Any flair in their play comes after the application of the basics which are rigidly adhered to and built upon.
England can learn from them and the selectors will already know, having watched the way that this Texaco Series has been lost, that only the most disciplined of our cricketers will beat the very best teams.
It would do no harm at all if they were to give Hollioake the boost of knowing that he will lead England in the triangular tournament against South Africa and Sri Lanka during August. With that worry behind him and with what ought to be a successful summer with Surrey, the self-belief and adventure that was his trademark should soon return.