Tea West Indies 165 for 4 (Hope 29*, Greaves 27*) vs Pakistan
Pakistan edged an attritional passage of play that set the stage for a spin-dominant Take a look at match. In an prolonged center session, Ali Usman and Sajid Khan bowled 25 overs and took two of the three West Indies wickets to fall. Shai Hope and Justin Greaves counterattacked via the final 45 minutes to restrict the injury, pushing the rating as much as 165 in what seems like one other sport the place each run might be contested over.
The shock omission of Mohammad Abbas was the primary speaking level of the Take a look at early on, its impact amplified by the brisk begin West Indies made. They raced alongside to 49 in 9.5 overs earlier than rain pressured an early lunch. Mercifully for Pakistan, Tagenarine Chanderpaul had hooked Mohammad Ali to fantastic leg off the final ball earlier than the climate interruption to present Pakistan one thing to cling to forward of the resumption.
As soon as the gamers took the sphere once more, it was instantly clear this is able to be a unique form of session. Quickly, Usman and Sajid had been working in tandem on a pitch that gripped and turned, and it wasn’t lengthy earlier than it claimed its first sufferer. A canny evaluation from Pakistan for a ball that landed on leg and ragged previous Brandon King’s outdoors edge confirmed three reds, giving Usman his first Take a look at wicket.
With one left-hander and one right-hander on the crease, Usman and Sajid operated relentlessly and stifled West Indies. Kavem Hodge went deep into his shell, and sometimes tried to interrupt the shackles with a launch sweep. Nevertheless, one in every of them off Sajid kissed his glove and ricocheted off his forearm in direction of Mohammad Rizwan, who took a pointy catch. It wanted one other evaluation from Pakistan, however they broke via as soon as extra.
Hope and Amir Jangoo started to understand they must stability run-scoring and warning. An excellent six over cowl from Hope set the tone as West Indies tried to shift momentum, and the following few overs noticed boundaries start to circulate comparatively frequently. It pressured Babar Azam to show again to tempo, returning to the costly Ubaid Shah.
It was right here that West Indies, who had been typically good at absorbing stress and combating via phases the place Pakistan’s bowlers dominated the roost briefly, let themselves down. Ubaid despatched his first one down leg, and Jangoo casually flicked at it, his inside edge kissing the ball on its means via to the keeper, handing the debutant his first wicket.
It didn’t put West Indies off their newfound positivity, although. Ubaid was dispatched for a number of boundaries and brought off after three overs, and a return spell from Ali was each ineffective and uneconomical, conceding 17 in three overs. Greaves was wonderful at placing overpitched deliveries away via the covers, whereas Hope started to develop in confidence in a fifth-wicket stand that had crept as much as 45 by the point tea was known as.
Danyal Rasool is Cricinfo’s Pakistan correspondent. @Danny61000
