West Indies crumble to spin to again as Pakistan take series lead
Posted: Sun Jan 19, 2025 7:14 am
Well, how do you sum that up? A madcap two sessions of cricket on the third day saw 17 wickets fall. Pakistan lost seven for 48, with Jomel Warrican registering the third-best figures for a visiting bowler in Pakistan. And yet, with half an hour to go for tea, Pakistan’s spinners had wrapped up a 127-run victory, skittling West Indies out for 123 in 36.3 overs to go 1-0 up in the series. Sajid Khan and Abrar Ahmed were the chief architects, taking nine of West Indies’ ten wickets as the visitors’ challenge appeared to melt away along with the solidity of the playing strip. West Indies had about 15 overs to face before lunch, and Pakistan just about made victory safe in this time. The visitors began with positive intent, having realised that poking and prodding would get them nowhere. It saw them through the first four overs, but as Sajid said yesterday, the strategy was to attack with the ball and defend with the field. Brathwaite employed the slog sweep to good effect so Pakistan had a fielder at deep midwicket, and it was him that the opener picked out to give Pakistan their first breakthrough. With prodigious turn around, especially to the right-hander off the footmarks, the stumps were always in play, and it helped Sajid clean up Mikyle Louis and Kavem Hodge to reduce West Indies to 37 for 4. 
Alick Athanaze used the sweep to good effect•Jan 19, 2025•PCB Noman Ali, who had surprisingly not opened the bowling from the other end, came into the attack and picked up a wicket on the stroke of lunch when Justin Greaves missed a sweep laden with risk in front of middle stump. There was plenty of West Indian resistance in the first hour after lunch, most notably from Alick Athanaze, whose half-century – West Indies’ only such contribution all Test – just about kept them alive. Alongside Tevin Imlach first and then Kevin Sinclair, Athanaze worked to give the Pakistan spinners as little as possible. They ditched the belligerent shot-making, and for the first time all Test, Sajid and Noman briefly didn’t look like a huge threat. (ESPNcricinfo) The post West Indies crumble to spin to again as Pakistan take series lead appeared first on News Room Guyana.
Source: https://newsroom.gy/2025/01/19/west-ind ... ries-lead/
Alick Athanaze used the sweep to good effect•Jan 19, 2025•PCB Noman Ali, who had surprisingly not opened the bowling from the other end, came into the attack and picked up a wicket on the stroke of lunch when Justin Greaves missed a sweep laden with risk in front of middle stump. There was plenty of West Indian resistance in the first hour after lunch, most notably from Alick Athanaze, whose half-century – West Indies’ only such contribution all Test – just about kept them alive. Alongside Tevin Imlach first and then Kevin Sinclair, Athanaze worked to give the Pakistan spinners as little as possible. They ditched the belligerent shot-making, and for the first time all Test, Sajid and Noman briefly didn’t look like a huge threat. (ESPNcricinfo) The post West Indies crumble to spin to again as Pakistan take series lead appeared first on News Room Guyana. Source: https://newsroom.gy/2025/01/19/west-ind ... ries-lead/