West Indies finished the day at 40/1, 41 runs behind the tourists after they posted a first-innings total of 393.

By Abdullah Ansari (2nd 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 started off with Gabriel and Joseph bowling as they looked to apply pressure with the new ball just 11 overs away. The batsmen were extremely cautious, continuing where they left off from the previous day as the nature of the pitch made run-scoring difficult. There was uneven bounce for the pacers which led to Azhar blocking almost everything initially as he scored only 1 run in the first 11 overs of the day. Bishoo got some assistance as well but West Indies soon took the new ball, an over after it was due. With cloud cover overhead, the pacers got the ball to move around a bit but Gabriel bowled a couple of loose deliveries. He soon got his radar right and bowled a testing spell as the batsmen almost exclusively fought for survival. It was only towards the end of the session that the batsmen got the ball away a few times for some runs as they finished with 54 in the 26 overs bowled with the score at 226/3.

Holder opted to start off with spin in the second session and there was some turn on offer. A few balls stayed low as well but the batsmen felt more at ease and began to get a few runs. One particular over from Chase went for 12 as Misbah got to another half-century. Next over, it was Azhar who finally got to his 13th ton in Test cricket. However, he fell in Bishoo's next over as he looked to defend a leg-break but only succeeded in getting a thin edge through to the keeper. Shafiq was slow to start as well, but Holder persisted with the spinners and Misbah decided to take advantage as he looked for boundaries with Bishoo hit for a six and a four in an over. The fifty partnership was raised with the captain having done the bulk of the scoring as he neared his hundred. With Misbah on 99, Holder bowled a short ball which the captain failed to deal with in time as he edged it, with the slip fielder taking the catch as he once again fell short of a hundred. There was more drama on offer as Sarfraz was soon suckered into driving at a full delivery from Gabriel but again only succeeding in edging to the slip cordon. On the last ball of the session, Shafiq was also dismissed as he tried to flick a delivery from Holder to the leg-side but missed and was trapped LBW with Pakistan suddenly 329/7 after looking comfortable at 316/4.

Shadab and Amir looked to build Pakistan's slender lead in the evening session with the former looking to be compact in defence while searching for runs. Amir dealt with it differently as he looked to smash his way to some quick runs. This soon led to his dismissal as he chased one away from his body and was caught at gully. Yasir came to bat looking like a man on a mission and played a few delightful shots. It was his partner Shadab who perished for 16 as he tried to flick one into the leg-side and was caught by Chase. Yasir was the last man to fall as he also edged one through to the wicket-keeper for 24, with Gabriel finishing with four wickets.

Amir began the second innings with a tight over while Abbas followed from the other end. He got one to swing back into Powell, who got an inside-edge. With the ball racing towards his right, Sarfraz dived and took a superb catch to dismiss the opener. Amir bowled tightly from the other end with one big appeal against Brathwaite but Pakistan opted against the review. The leg-spin twins bowled a couple of overs apiece to try and squeeze another wicket in but the batsmen were solid and Hetmyer finished the day with two fours off Shadab as West Indies ended at 40/1, 41 runs behind.

Summary: Yet another topsy-turvy day with Pakistan looking to be well in control when Misbah was at the crease but giving up the advantage with a poor show by the lower order. The tailenders and Shadab showed some fight to drag the lead to 81 but at one time, it looked as though Pakistan may only bat once in the innings. Abbas' wicket will cheer up the tourists and they'll hope to continue in the same vein and limit the home side to a low total to avoid a tricky chase on a difficult pitch.

Fall of wickets: 

4-259 (Azhar Ali, 101.6 ov)
5-316 (Misbah-ul-Haq, 120.2 ov)
6-325 (Sarfraz Ahmed, 123.5 ov)
7-329 (Asad Shafiq, 124.6 ov)
8-354 (Mohammad Amir, 132.1 ov)
9-384 (Shadab Khan, 137.6 ov)
10-393 (Yasir Shah, 139.6 ov)

1-8 (Powell, 1.4 ov)

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