West Indies v Pakistan, 1st Test, Day 1 Review: Hosts fightback after early jolts

The West Indies team were thoroughly beaten and bruised in the limited overs fixtures of the tour. The last time they played Pakistan in a Test series, they were beaten 2-1 in 2016. Coming into the series, not many had given the hosts a chance to beat the visitors.

From Pakistan point of view, it was about giving a fitting farewell to two of their stalwarts of the game. Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan had announced their retirement prior to the commencement of the series and this 3-match fixture was stated to be their last assignment in Pakistan whites.

Amidst this backdrop, the first Test commenced at the Sabina park. The visitors were expected to call the shots in the game and that is exactly how things fared up in the game. Misbah won the toss and opted to bowl first.

In walked Kraigg Brathwaite and Kieran Powell to open the innings for West Indies. Rookie pacer Mohammed Abbas gave an early jitter to the hosts by sending Brathwaite for a duck. Shimon Heytmer, the U19 World Cup hero was the new man in on his debut. He showed some patience before being dismissed on 11. Mohammad Amir ran through his defences to get Shai Hope at the crease.

It was only a matter of time before Amir got his second scalp of the day. He dismissed Hope on 2. Another debutant Vishaul Singh walked in to join Powell at the crease. The Guyana all-rounder could not do much either and perished after scoring 9. Wahab Riaz was the beneficiary on the occasion.

Meanwhile, Powell, who had shown great resistance thus far, lost his calm and ended up giving his wicket to Amir on 33. At 71/5, things looked very grim for the hosts and Pakistan were all over them.

Roston Chase and Shane Dowrich then had the task of rebuilding the innings. Both batsmen showed great character in the middle to help the hosts stabilise a great deal. They put on a marathon 118-run stand across two sessions to lead the fightback.

A very patient stay at the crease by both batsmen saw the West Indies reach a point of safety. The marathon stand certainly saved them from a lot of embarrassment on the day. In the process, both batsmen reached their respective fifties and looked good for more.

The partnership was eventually broken when Chase lost his patience and was caught by Wahab Riaz off the bowling of Yasir Shah. He finished with a score 63 and just following his dismissal, his partner Dowrich too fell in the same over of Yasir Shah as the leggie breached through his defence with a terrific delivery. With the score at 189/7, captain Jason Holder and Devendra Bishoo.

Holder executed some exceptional shots to perfection and Bishoo too started a counter attack on the Pakistan bowlers which left them searching for answers. Yasir who had earlier troubled their top batsmen on a regular basis was treated with disdain by the all-rounder as he smashed a couple through the cover region. It was exceptional strokeplay by the free flowing batsman while Bishoo gave him ample support.

Eventually, the hosts ended the day at 244/7 in 81 overs before ball light stopped play with 9 overs still left in the day’s play. While Holder was unbeaten on 30, Bishoo was batting on 23. The duo will definitely want to take their total over the 300 mark.

Brief Scores 

West Indies 1st innings 244/7 in 81 overs (Roston Chase 63, Shane Dowrich 56, Mohammad Amir 3/28, Yasir Shah 2/91)

Check out – Full scorecard here