Brathwaite hails West Indies' long-awaited Test win in Pakistan
West Indies bowler Jomel Warrican dominated his team's first victory over Pakistan in nearly 35 years on Monday, with skipper Kraigg Brathwaite labelling it an "outstanding" performance.
The 32-year-old left-arm spinner took nine wickets to spearhead a series-levelling win against the hosts on the third day of the second Test in Multan.
Pakistan needed 178 to win and sweep the two-match series after being reduced to 76-4 at stumps on the second day but lost two quick wickets when Saud Shakeel (13) and Kashif Ali (1) were removed cheaply by Kevin Sinclair and Jomel Warrican.
Mohammad Rizwan gave the hosts a fighting chance, scoring 25 runs off 62 deliveries, before the wicketkeeper-batter was sent packing in the 42nd over by Warrican, who did the bulk of the damage with the ball with five wickets in the second innings.
Reduced to 122-8, Pakistan's chase fizzled out when Gudakesh Motie removed Noman Ali and Warrican struck again to take out Sajid Khan.
Skipper Brathwaite was effusive in his praise for Warrican, man of the match and of the series for his 19 wickets.
"Jomel was outstanding," said Brathwaite.
"To see how he went about his bowling and the pressure he built from ball one, I mean, it was amazing.
"With the bat, you can't come to him more. I think he did a fantastic job with the bat as well. But bowling-wise, I know he's worked hard over the years."
Brathwaite said Warrican's performance was as "amazing" as that of Shamar Joseph in Australia 12 months ago, when the newcomer fast bowler helped power the West Indians to a rare victory.
"This one is right up there, both amazing Test wins," said Brathwaite. "To come here, playing here in Pakistan, it's never easy to win a Test match so to have done that is fantastic."
The victory is West Indies' first in Pakistan since winning the Faisalabad Test in November 1990.
Pakistan won the first Test by 127 runs, also in Multan.
However, the second Test victory lifted West Indies to eighth in the World Test Championship, having started the series on ninth and last.
The defeat plunged Pakistan from eighth to last.
Warrican scored a crucial 36 not out in the first innings, which lifted the West Indies from a precarious 9-95 to 163 all out.
Pakistan skipper Shan Masood acknowledged that the runs made by the West Indian tail were the turning point.
"We allowed them to score 109 runs for the last two wickets and then we were 119-4 and then bowled out for 154 and conceded a nine-run lead, that pushed us back," Masood said.
"We made mistakes as a team and lost as a team," said Masood, who has now lost nine of 12 Tests as captain.
He defended the tactic of using dry pitches to assist spin bowlers in matches at home.
"We've won three out of four Tests," said Masood, referring to Pakistan's two wins against England and then the first West Indies Test.
Pakistan's batters also found the conditions tough to bat on, raising calls to have similar pitches in domestic matches where fast bowlers have ruled in the past two seasons.
"We have to replicate these conditions in our domestic matches so that our batters can also bat better in future, but this is the strategy with which we have won a series against England," Masood said.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Gulf Today
20 hours ago
- Gulf Today
Australia struggle to fill gaping opener hole left by Warner with WTC final looming
Filling the giant shoes of David Warner continues to be a headache for Australia 17 months after the bombastic Test opener retired, with Marnus Labuschagne shaping as the latest contender in the World Test Championship final against South Africa. Warner pulled stumps on the red-ball game in January last year after 112 Tests and 8,786 runs, long accompanied at the top of the order by Usman Khawaja. Khawaja will open again in the blockbuster clash at Lord's starting on June 11, potentially with a fifth different partner since Warner called it quits. Steve Smith initially plugged the hole, but only lasted four Tests before dropping back down to four and giving Nathan McSweeney a chance. McSweeney struggled against the Jasprit Bumrah-led India late last year, with gung-ho teenager Sam Konstas then thrust into the limelight in spectacular fashion during the home series. He scored a blazing 60 with a slew of unorthodox shots on debut, but was less effective in the next Test and was jettisoned in favour of Travis Head for their tour of Sri Lanka this year. With Head set to revert to five, the chatter is that it's now a toss-up between Konstas, who has been working on technical aspects of his batting, and Labuschagne to open against the Proteas. But the experienced Labuschagne has struggled for form at number three and is under threat from Cameron Green, who has been in magnificent touch since returning from back surgery. Green has plundered three centuries in five county championship matches for Gloucester and is tipped to start at first drop, which could thrust Labuschagne to the top of the Test order for the first time aged 30. 'I have just got a bit of a feeling that Marnus Labuschagne might be pushed up the order to open the batting with Khawaja,' Australia great Ricky Ponting said on the ICC Review. 'I think Green will bat at three and Steve Smith will be at four. Then it's Travis Head at five.' Since Ponting commented, Australia skipper Pat Cummins has confirmed that Smith will bat at four, but added: 'Everyone else, I'm not willing to (say).' Josh Inglis has not been discounted to open either with chief selector George Bailey insisting the position does not need to be a specialist role. 'I do think it's a role that more people could do,' he said. Australia could be searching for yet another new opener sooner rather than later with uncertainty over whether 38-year-old Khawaja will continue after the home Ashes series against England beginning later this year. But fellow veteran Smith, 36, shows few signs of slowing down. He has hit four hundreds in his past five Tests and often excels in English conditions. He starred in Australia's triumph in the last WTC final in 2023 at the Oval, scoring a first-innings century that helped set the tone for a big win over India. Smith was also in red-hot form the last time he played a Test at Lord's, smacking a ton against England while making his second-highest Test score of 215 at the ground in 2015. 'We have got some pretty fond memories at Lord's and personally I have got some fond memories as well, so we are looking forward to getting started,' Smith told reporters. Meanwhile, Australian fast bowler Starc is comfortable with his decision to leave the Indian Premier League (IPL) following the India-Pakistan clashes last month regardless of any repercussions, the 35-year-old said. The IPL was suspended on May 9 in the wake of hostilities between the two. It resumed on May 17 after the nuclear-armed neighbours agreed to a ceasefire. 'I'm comfortable with my decision and how I felt about the whole situation and how it was handled,' Starc told the Sydney Morning Herald on Friday. 'Time will tell with repercussions or how it looks with guys that didn't return. But I've had my questions and concerns leading into that game, and obviously we saw what happened, which played a part in my decision.' Agencies
Int'l Cricket Council
a day ago
- Int'l Cricket Council
Lyon wary of South Africa's batters ahead of WTC25 Final
South Africa opener Ryan Rickelton heads into the London contest on the back of a superb innings of 259 in his most recent red-ball encounter, while skipper Temba Bavuma and experienced right-hander David Bedingham both scored in excess of 600 runs during the World Test Championship cycle that saw the Proteas finish at the top of the standings. Lyon has also played against South African greats in the ilk of AB de Villiers and Jacques Kallis and knows the quality of players available for selection in the country. "I'm a cricket nuffie, so I've watched a fair amount of cricket and even tuned into their (South Africa's tour) game at the moment against Zimbabwe," Lyon said. "They've got some class players as I said with the likes of Aiden Markram, Rickelton at the top of the order there, they're class players, there's no point in hiding behind that fact either. 'I played against Bedingham last year here in county ricket and he's a special player, so at the end of the day it's going to be guys who do the basics…and enjoy the pressure moments."
Dubai Eye
3 days ago
- Dubai Eye
Stead stands down as New Zealand coach after seven years
Gary Stead will stand down as Black Caps coach at the end of June, New Zealand Cricket said on Wednesday, bringing to an end a highly successful seven-year reign that included the capture of the inaugural World Test Championship title. The 53-year-old stood down as coach of the country's white ball teams in April and his desire to spend less time on tour ultimately did not marry with NZC's aspiration to have one coach across all formats. "There's been some amazing memories over the past seven years based around a group of fantastic and talented people who have gone out to give their best for their country," he said in a NZC statement. "It's been nice to be competitive across all three formats and I'd like to think that regardless of results, the opposition know the Black Caps are a team that won't fold." Stead said the World Test Championship triumph in 2021 and New Zealand's 3-0 sweep of India on the sub-continent last year were the highlights of his time in charge. New Zealand also finished as runners-up on boundary countback at the 2019 50-overs World Cup, runners-up at the 2021 Twenty20 World Cup as well as at the Champions Trophy earlier this year. The Black Caps topped the test and ODI rankings and reached the semi-finals at two other white-ball World Cups during his time in charge. "For a country with five million people and limited resources, we comparatively perform outstandingly well against the other powerhouses of the game," Stead added. Producing consistent performances over such a lengthy period rested in some part on Stead's ability to refresh the squad with young players as generational talents retired or spent lengthy periods on the sidelines with injury. Former Black Caps captain Kane Williamson said Stead is likely to be remembered as one of New Zealand's most successful cricket coaches. "There was no one more hardworking and passionate about seeing the Black Caps grow and succeed," he said. "He was always thorough in his planning and preparation and will go down as one of our best coaches, but an even better bloke." NZC have already started the search for the successor to the former top-order test batsman and Stead said he would take some time to recharge before seeking out another challenge. "I still have the coaching bug and will look to explore opportunities at home and abroad where I can look to share what I've learned from my 30 years of professional sport as a player and coach," he said.
