Pakistan 36 for 0 (Azhar 16*, Shehzad 16*) trail West Indies 312 (Chase 131, Holder 58, Abbas 4-56, Amir 3-65) by 276 runs
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Alzarri Joseph was the last man out, bowled off a full toss © AFP
It appeared that for Pakistan the panacea for all possible ailments – be it a cold, high fever, or a seventh-wicket West Indian partnership – was a good night’s rest. After trying everything to break through the defences of Roston Chase and Jason Holder on Sunday, Pakistan dismissed both within nine deliveries on Monday to take a firm grip over the Bridgetown Test.
West Indies were bowled, adding only 26 runs to their overnight 286. Ahmed Shehzad and Azhar Ali batted out the 14 overs until lunch. Everything was going to plan again for the tourists.
The day began with a couple of wickets that were mirror images of each other. Holder attempted leave when a shot should have been played, and Chase attempted shot when the ball was better off being left. But the effect of their dismissals was the same; it wrenched all the momentum the home side had built up over a painstaking 132-run partnership, putting them back to the place they are so dreadfully familiar with: square one.
A breezy partnership between Alzarri Joseph and Devendra Bishoo ensured the West Indies made it past 300 but the optimism with which they had begun the day had long since evaporated. Mohammad Abbas – the most successful bowler today – got rid of Bishoo soon after. Yasir Shah cleaned up Joseph next over, and West Indies found themselves shot out for 312.
Pakistan’s openers, who were disappointing in Jamaica, were comfortable against a new ball that neither swung through the air nor seamed off the pitch. Shehzad was given a life on 3 when he scooped a catch off Shannon Gabriel’s bowling to mid-on, but the fielder Vishaul Singh was unable to convert it.
With the fast bowlers having no luck, West Indies turned to Chase again and he was able to get his offbreaks to spit and snarl out of the footmarks outside the right-hander’s off stump. Even so, they did not bring a wicket, and West Indies walked off for lunch with almost no positives from the morning’s play. They might be served the same food, but the Pakistanis are sure to enjoy it more.
Danyal Rasool is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo. @Danny61000
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Source: ESPN Crickinfo