Pakistan batsmen fell apart on Day 5, being dismissed for 81 in chase of 188.

By Abdullah Ansari (4th May, 2017)

Toss: West Indies won the toss, Jason Holder chose to bat first.

Teams

West Indies: KC Brathwaite, KOA Powell, SO Hetmyer, SD Hope, VA Singh, SO Dowrich†, RL Chase, JO Holder*, D Bishoo, AS Joseph, ST Gabriel

Pakistan: Azhar Ali, Ahmed Shehzad, Babar Azam, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq*, Asad Shafiq, Sarfraz Ahmed†, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Amir, Yasir Shah, Mohammad Abbas

West Indies only added four runs to their overnight total as Yasir broke through on the fifth delivery of the day to dismiss Bishoo, finishing with 7/94 as Pakistan were set a target of 188. The chase began in a quiet manner with the batsmen playing conservatively and the run-rate hovering at around 1/over. Gabriel was the one to strike a major blow in the 7th over as Azhar tried to pull a shortish delivery but only succeeded in finding the fielder at short mid-wicket. Next over, Joseph struck as well as Babar tried to glance one down the leg-side but only succeeded in edging it through to the wicket-keeper for another, earning a pair in the match. Shehzad and Younis tried to stay calm but the former was almost dismissed off Joseph as he edged one but the slip fielder couldn't catch it. Holder came on to bowl and removed Younis with one that stayed low and swerved in as he was plumb LBW. It got even better for the home side as a review against Misbah for LBW resulted in him getting out caught as he had gotten an inside edge, with the fielder taking the catch. Shafiq didn't last long, getting squared up by a superb delivery from Gabriel and edging it for another duck. Pakistan went to the Lunch break with the chase in disarray at 35/5.

Joseph struck in the second over after the resumption to dismiss Shehzad with another delivery that stayed low. Next over, it was Holder who got Shadab to edge one behind. Amir came out, looking to counter-attack with Pakistan going nowhere and it seemed like a good decision but it was fraught with risk. Amir went after a wide one but the slip fielder couldn't take the catch. On another occasion, he flashed hard and got one through the slip cordon. While Sarfraz also fought on at the other end, Amir's lively innings came to an end as he drove one but ended up slicing it to backward point. The rest was a mere formality as a superb delivery from Gabriel had Yasir castled and then Sarfraz hoicked one into the air to be caught, with Pakistan bowled out for 81. West Indies equalled the series with the 106-run win.

Summary: A disastrous capitulation by Pakistan with the West Indian bowlers very impressive. The pacers had the measure of the pitch and aimed at the stumps often with the strategy paying off. The Pakistan batsmen were unsure and the start seemed to indicate that they wanted to conserve wickets but when that failed, there was no back up strategy until Amir's counter-attack; by then, it was simply too late. The batting performances on the last two days also showed that Hope's 90 on Day 3 was a crucial innings and may well have been the difference between the two sides. Pakistan need to come back hard and put up a good show in the final Test, otherwise they risk another drawn series in the Caribbean and if worst comes to the worst, Misbah and Younis may well be saying farewell on the back of a series loss.

Fall of wickets: 

10-268 (Bishoo, 102.5 ov)

1-10 (Azhar Ali, 6.5 ov)
2-11 (Babar Azam, 7.3 ov)
3-27 (Younis Khan, 12.5 ov)
4-30 (Misbah-ul-Haq, 15.2 ov)
5-30 (Asad Shafiq, 15.4 ov)
6-35 (Ahmed Shehzad, 21.2 ov)
7-36 (Shadab Khan, 22.4 ov)
8-78 (Mohammad Amir, 31.4 ov)
9-81 (Yasir Shah, 33.4 ov)
10-81 (Sarfraz Ahmed, 34.4 ov)

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