Why http://www.senore.com/Cricket/West-Indies-c760?
Pakistan were stunned after their 40-run loss to the West Indies in the first of the two-match Test series, at the Providence Stadium, Guyana in the Caribbean. The Men in Green have been unable to win a Test series on the Caribbean soil in the past and will
not be able to do it this time around as well, as they have only one more match remaining.
Although Pakistan have the opportunity to level the series by winning the next game, the team should also focus on the reasons of their defeat in the first encounter.
Did the pitch play a part in Pakistan’s defeat? It certainly did to some extent, but the conditions were even for both sides, so it shouldn’t be an excuse. However, from a neutral perspective, the visitors were on a bit of a disadvantage.
The West Indian captain, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/DJG-Sammy-c1382, was lucky to win the toss and he elected to bat first without any hesitation. However, the pitch didn’t appear to be a first-day wicket, as there was uneven bounce from ball one of the Test.
Pakistan’s skipper, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Mohammad-Hafeez-c76898, bowled the second over of the game and the ball was turning square.
It is a common practice for the teams to introduce spin from the start of the match in limited-over cricket, but it is bizarre to see a spinner share the new ball on the very first day of the five-day game.
Apart from that, only one batsman, Misbah, was able to score beyond 50 whereas the second highest score of the match was 49 by the home team’s opener, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/LMP-Simmons-c1843. These stats are enough to declare the wicket as one of the main reasons for the visitors
defeat, as they batted last in the match.
Another big factor in Pakistan’s loss was the inexperienced line-up. None of the Pakistan players in the current squad have toured the Caribbean before and had no clue of the conditions. The team’s biggest loss was veteran batsman, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Younis-Khan-c98325, who had to
skip the series following his brother’s death. He was the only player, who had played a Test series in West Indies and also scored a century.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) didn’t announce any replacement for Younis, but they might consider the class act, Mohammad Yousaf, who recently scored a century in County Championship match. His innings was considered to be one of the best in this season,
as the pitch was equally difficult to the one used in Pakistan versus West Indies game.
Although the conditions and lack of experience played a big role in Pakistan’s defeat, the team made some mistakes in the match, which proved to be costly. The home team were 104 for nine in their second innings and they had an overall lead of 170 at the
stage.
However, the visitors failed to get the final batsman out quickly, conceding 48 runs for the last wicket partnership. This proved to be one of the major reasons in the team’s loss, considering they lost the match by 40 runs.
Finally, the failure of the Pakistani top-order batsmen played a vital role in the outcome of the game. The visitors lost three wickets for just two runs on the board, which gave an early edge to the home team.
Both teams will be up against in the second and final Test match of the series on Friday, May 20th, at the Warner Park, St Kitts. The Caribbean Kings have the winning momentum and will be eying to win the series whereas the Men in Green will seek
revenge in the last match of the entire tour.
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