West Indies' Jayden Seales Shines with Five-for as Pakistan Suffers 90-run Defeat
West Indies took a 1-0 lead in the two-match Test series after defeating Pakistan by 90 runs in the opening match of the two-match series at the Brian Lara Stadium in Trinidad.
Pakistan's batting collapsed quickly, slipping to 71/9 as they chased 211 runs to win. Despite a 49-run partnership for the final wicket between captain Babar Azam and No. 11 Mohammad Abbas, Pakistan's fight was ultimately ended by fast bowler Jayden Seales.
Seales finished with figures of 5/20, claiming the wickets of Abbas and four others to help West Indies secure a comprehensive victory. Babar Azam remained unbeaten on 58, but his efforts were in vain as Pakistan's batting unit struggled to provide support.
Babar admitted Pakistan's batting was not good enough after the defeat. "We played good cricket in the last few days but today we were not up to the mark as a batting unit. We lost back-to-back wickets. We will look to make sure it doesn’t happen in the next matches," he said.
Pakistan's second innings defeat reflected their first innings problems, where they lost six wickets for just 38 runs and were dismissed for 282, handing West Indies a 29-run first-innings lead. West Indies had posted 311 in their first innings, thanks in part to a century from Shan Masood and half-centuries from Imam-ul-Haq and Babar Azam.
However, Masood's injury made things more difficult for Pakistan. After hurting his hand in the first innings, he was forced to bat at No. 8 instead of his usual No. 3 position. This lack of consistency was evident in Pakistan's batting, where only six batters managed to score in double figures across both innings.
West Indies built a match-winning lead on Day 4, resuming at 126/7 with a lead of 155 runs. Shamar Joseph added 16 runs to his overnight score of 22, while Kemar Roach contributed 13 as West Indies pushed their advantage beyond 200.
Seales received good support from Kemar Roach and Justin Greaves, who picked up two wickets each. Greaves was named Player of the Match after his impressive performance, taking 5/27 in Pakistan's first innings. For Pakistan, Abbas was the standout performer with the ball, taking 3/63 and 5/22 in the two West Indies innings.
The second Test of the series will begin on Sunday, with Pakistan looking to level the series. After a disappointing performance in the first match, the visitors will be hoping to turn things around and secure a win.
Source: Yahoo Sports