WI v PAK, 3rd Test, Day 2 Review: Azhar ton, Misbah and Sarfraz fifties help Pakistan post 376

Unlike the grey and gloomy skies that loomed over Roseau on Day 1, the Pakistan batsmen walked out to the middle bathed in the sunshine to resume from their overnight score of 169/2. The prolific Younis Khan, playing his final Test in a career plenteous with milestones, was at it in the very first over. He slashed a wide delivery from Gabriel away to the boundary, off his feet while he did so and perfectly on top of the bounce.

That shot though was the only boundary in the next seven overs, as both Azhar Ali and Younis went into their shells. The latter couldn’t break into a swan-song as he perished to skipper Jason Holder. Struck on the pads, Younis opted for a review, but Hawkeye revealed that the ball would have clipped just enough of the stump to send Younis packing. His grinding knock of 18 from 70 deliveries came to an inauspicious end.

One legend left the crease to be replaced by another. Captain Misbah ul-Haq walked out to the middle, greeted by a second guard of honour performed by the West Indies side. The skipper came with the intent to bring some form of urgency to the Pakistan snail’s pace innings. The 6^th ball he faced would have forced him to head back to the dressing room, had it not been for a keeper’s spill. Misbah prodded at a peach of a delivery in line with off stump, but managed to find an edge. Dowrich’s drop left Jason Holder buckling at the knees. Dropping the captain when he was still to get off the mark proved to be a costly mistake.

Meanwhile, Azhar Ali edged towards his hundred ever so slowly. The special moment came as he glanced a Holder delivery fine, giving him enough time to come back for the second. Azhar brought up his 14^th Test century, and it was back to back hundreds for the flag-bearer of Pakistan’s cricketing future. Bat tucked under his arm and helmet in hand, Azhar offered a salute towards the dressing room.

Despite Misbah’s presence at the crease, the Pakistan batsmen were pushed further into their shell. The West Indies bowlers kept things reasonably quiet with the old ball. At one stage, Misbah was stuck at 1 off 52 balls, while Azhar managed to score 37 off 92 in the first session. The duo went into Lunch having achieved their objective of not losing too many wickets on a crisp sunny morning.

Azhar’s hard-fought hundred came to an end shortly after Lunch. He missed the ball by a fair distance while attempting an attacking shot, which, during his lengthy innings, was a rarity. Asad Shafiq didn’t last long either, despite showing minor signs of aggression with the bat. He holed out to long-off, rewarding Roston Chase with his 3^rd wicket in the game.

Sarfraz Ahmed showed that Pakistan’s batting future were in safe hands, as his half century off 70 odd balls injected some much needed momentum into the visitors’ first innings. Pakistan’s last few batsmen though fell in the final session of the day’s play, while adding 65 runs to the team total. Holder took two wickets in two deliveries, sending Mohammad Amir and Yasir Shah back to the hut.

Sarfraz, however, irritated the Windies bowlers by forcing them to bowl erratic line and length. He collected 39 runs in a 45-run stand between himself and Mohammad Abbas, driving the Pakistan total over the 350 mark. They were bundled out for 376 eventually, but having batted close to 150 overs, a team with the caliber of Pakitan’s batsmen should have hoped to have more on the board.

West Indies’ reply began with an uncanny resemblance to the way Pakistan batted for a majority of the day. Having negotiated 11 overs, Kieron Powell and Kraigg Brathwaite managed to put on 14 runs together before the umpire dislodged the bails to call it a day. In all, Day 2 witnessed 88.3 overs in which 221 runs had been scored. The pacers didn’t have much reward off the pitch, barring the odd ball or two that jumped up and nipped back. However, Yasir Shah found turn and bounce, thus giving the West Indies a glimpse of what he could bring to the equation on Day 3. A grinding day of Test cricket ended with Pakistan having the upper hand.

Brief Scores:

Pakistan 376/10 in 146.3 overs (Azhar Ali 127, Misbah 59, Chase 4/103, Holder 3/71)

West Indies 14/0 (Powell 9*)

Check full scorecard here.