Pakistan v West Indies - Series Summary

Having never beaten Pakistan in eight previous ATG Tests, West Indies became just the fifth side to come from behind to win a series after four Tests of entertaining cricket and fluctuating fortune. Pakistan threatened a repeat of their 4-0 success in the Caribbean after a comprehensive victory in the first Test in Karachi, but following a classic drawn Test in Faisalabad, West Indies welcomed back skipper Garry Sobers after he had missed the first two matches with injury, and his influence told as the tourists rallied to win the final two matches and take the spoils.

Although six different players recorded centuries for West Indies, only Haynes and Lloyd batted with any consistency, and Viv Richards endured his most disappointing series for some time, averaging just 33 from his eight innings. It was a similar story with the ball, as only Michael Holding threatened on a regular basis, but timely performances from Marshall and Walsh in the third Test and Gibbs in the fourth provided a cutting edge when it really mattered, and Marshall and Holding also compiled two vital partnerships with the bat in Peshawar that ultimately proved pivotal in the outcome of the series.

Pakistan opened with a bang, running up their highest ever team total in the first Test as Javed Miandad broke his own individual batting record in the process, but it was very much a case of 'after the Lord Mayor's Show' for Javed over the course of the remaining three Tests, and whilst the likes of Zaheer, Majid and Asif Iqbal all had their moments with the bat, there was never the consistency that was required for long term success, with the opening partnership of Hanif Mohammad and Saeed Anwar a particular disappointment. Asif and Imran both contributed on a regular basis with the ball, but received little support; Qadir and Akram were disappointing, whilst Waqar's performance was a complete let-down after his recent demolition job in New Zealand.

West Indies have now won three series on the trot as their rise back up the rankings continues, but despite recently setting a record of 15 Tests without defeat, Pakistan have failed to win any of their last three series, proving that it's tough at the top in the world of ATG cricket.

Pakistan Batting
Javed Miandad 443 runs @ 63.29, Zaheer Abbas 324 @ 46.29, Majid Khan 300 @ 42.86, Asif Iqbal 247 @ 41.17, Imran Khan 240 @ 40.00

Pakistan Bowling
Imran Khan 20 wkts @ 25.00, Asif Iqbal 10 @ 29.40, Wasim Akram 11 @ 34.82, Abdul Qadir 11 @ 34.91, Waqar Younis 12 @ 43.83

West Indies Batting
CH Lloyd 328 runs @ 54.67, DL Haynes 412 @ 51.50, GStA Sobers 146 @ 48.67, MA Holding 178 @ 44.50, CG Greenidge 331 @ 41.38

West Indies Bowling
MA Holding 16 wkts @ 26.38, CA Walsh 12 @ 33.42, LR Gibbs 14 @ 34.29, MD Marshall 15 @ 34.80

WEST INDIES WON THE SERIES 2-1


Players of the Series: Asif Iqbal & MA Holding

Pakistan v West Indies - Fourth Test

Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore

Pakistan: Hanif Mohammad, Saeed Anwar, Majid Khan, Javed Miandad, Zaheer Abbas, Asif Iqbal, *Imran Khan, +Wasim Bari, Fazal Mahmood, Abdul Qadir, Waqar Younis.
West Indies: CG Greenidge, DL Haynes, IVA Richards, EdeC Weekes, CH Lloyd, *GStA Sobers, +PJL Dujon, MD Marshall, MA Holding, LR Gibbs, CA Walsh.

Debuts: Nil
Umpires: VK Ramaswamy (IND) & LP Rowan (AUS)
Toss: West Indies

It was winner takes all in Lahore following West Indies' narrow victory in Peshawar, and the cast was almost identical, Fazal Mahmood's inclusion in place of Wasim Akram (side strain) the only change on either side. A very flat looking strip meant that the team winning the toss should gain a significant advantage, and Garry Sobers' correct call gave West Indies the first opportunity to use the immaculately prepared facilities.

Haynes (4) was an early casualty, driving Imran to Qadir at mid off from just the fourth ball of the match, but West Indies dominated the rest of the day's proceedings, rattling up an imposing 361-5 by close of play and eventually totalling 428 at a pace exceeding four runs an over. The innings centred around two partnerships: Greenidge (73) and Richards (103) added 154 for the second wicket as both players found their best form for just about the first time in the series then, after a mid-afternoon wobble left West Indies on a potentially precarious 222-5, Sobers and Dujon took over with a wonderfully phlegmatic, clinically efficient sixth wicket stand.

Both players reached richly deserved centuries during the course of their 178 run liaison, a West Indian record, and Dujon became the first wicket keeper to record the double of 2000 runs and 100 dismissals in the process. Waqar looked a shadow of the bowler that took all ten in New Zealand, and had it not been for Imran's perseverance then West Indies could have disappeared well beyond the horizon. As it was, a spell of 4-18 on the second morning allowed Pakistan's skipper to record his best ever analysis in ATG cricket, and it was now down to his batsmen to mount a worthy response to what was still a formidable total.

Eight players managed to reach double figures in Pakistan's reply, but crucially there were no centuries as the tourists' bowlers plugged away to secure a first innings lead of over a hundred. Saeed Anwar (76) and Majid Khan (52) were both missed by Dujon during a second wicket stand of 102, but once Anwar was well held in the gully by Gibbs off Marshall, wickets fell steadily as Pakistan failed to replicate the dominance displayed by the West Indian batsmen. The crowd became fractious when Javed was contentiously given out caught behind off Marshall by umpire Rowan, and with Pakistan's batting becoming ever more nervous, Holding snapped up the final four wickets as the innings closed on 306 half an hour after tea on the third evening.

West Indies now held the whip hand in this Test, and led by Gordon Greenidge they once again made batting look easy on the fourth day as Pakistan's weary attack continued to toil. Greenidge spanked a 93 ball century as he careered his way to 158, and with Haynes firmly anchored at the other end, 234 runs were amassed for the first wicket before Greenidge was smartly held by Wasim Bari off Qadir. Despite losing much of the afternoon session to rain West Indies managed to rack up a total of 274-3 before Sobers declared upon the fall of Haynes' wicket for 89, and Pakistan faced a target of 397 to win with 45 minutes on the fourth evening and all of the final day to get them.

Batting in the manner of West Indies could still give Pakistan the opportunity to pull of an incredible victory, and a lunchtime score of 103-1 on the final day might have provided the platform for such an onslaught, but a dramatic afternoon's play left West Indies as the only side capable of winning the match. Lance Gibbs finished the session with four wickets to his name after dismissing both openers in the forties, then a defiant partnership of 64 between Majid and Imran was cut off as both partners edged rising deliveries from Walsh and Holding in successive overs. Six wickets had fallen for 89 in a disastrous session for Pakistan, and they now faced defeat in both the match and the series. Brave resistance from the tail frustrated West Indies for a time after tea, but Gibbs took his fifth wicket by inducing Fazal to hole out to Holding for 17, and the new ball then accounted for Qadir (21) and Bari (19) as Pakistan were bowled out for 243, handing West Indies a well deserved victory with nine overs to spare.

West Indies had thus taken the series 2-1, ending the dominance that Pakistan had hitherto enjoyed over them, and their aggressive approach in this match had paid rich dividends. Pakistan had begun the series in fine fashion, but West Indies' tense victory in Peshawar was a crushing blow for the hosts, and a 153 run win here in Lahore rounded off what was eventually a most successful tour for Garry Sobers' team.

Scores
WI 1st Inns 428 (Sobers 104, Richards 103, Dujon 102, Greenidge 73; Imran Khan 6-86)
PAK 1st Inns 306 (Saeed Anwar 76, Majid Khan 52, Javed Miandad 45, Wasim Bari 40; Holding 4-53)
WI 2nd Inns 274-3 dec. (Greenidge 158, Haynes 89)
PAK 2nd Inns 243 (Majid Khan 59, Saeed Anwar 47, Hanif Mohammad 43; Gibbs 5-56)

WEST INDIES WON BY 153 RUNS

Man of the Match: CG Greenidge

Pakistan v West Indies - Third Test

Arbab Niaz Stadium, Peshawar

Pakistan: Hanif Mohammad, Saeed Anwar, Majid Khan, Javed Miandad, Zaheer Abbas, Asif Iqbal, *Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, +Wasim Bari, Abdul Qadir, Waqar Younis.
West Indies: CG Greenidge, DL Haynes, IVA Richards, EdeC Weekes, CH Lloyd, *GStA Sobers, +PJL Dujon, MD Marshall, MA Holding, LR Gibbs, CA Walsh.

Debuts: Nil
Umpires: DR Shepherd (ENG) & AR Crafter (AUS)
Toss: Pakistan

With Viv Richards and returning skipper Garry Sobers becoming the first players to reach 50 ATG caps, there were celebrations in the West Indies' camp before a ball was bowled in Peshawar, but would the tourists still be celebrating after five days' play on a pitch that was not expected to go the distance?

It was a good toss to win for Imran, and it was honours Pakistan on first innings, with Majid Khan's fluent century the main difference between the two teams. Majid (130) and Zaheer (89) piled on 167 for the fourth wicket after Zaheer had been dropped on 12 by Marshall off the bowling of Gibbs, but once Marshall removed Majid during an excellent second morning spell, Pakistan lost their last seven wickets for just 97, with Imran's 48 the only other meaningful contribution out of a final total of 385. As a footnote to the innings, all ten wickets had fallen to catches, just the third such occurrence in ATG history.

West Indies' reply got off to a rocket start, Greenidge, Haynes and Richards all passing 50 as the score sped to 170-1 on the third morning, but after both Imran and Qadir had been savagely hit out of the attack, three separate stoppages for rain did not help the batsmen's concentration, and Waqar returned to wipe away the middle order before a defiant fifty partnership for the eighth wicket between Marshall (34) and Holding (31) pushed the total beyond 300. A resurgent Qadir bowled well at the end of the innings, which closed with West Indies having totalled 328, and Pakistan thus took a 57 run lead into what proved to be a pivotal fourth day.

Batting was now proving more difficult on a pitch that was offering up some uneven bounce, and after both openers had departed fending catches to Haynes at short leg, Javed (18), Zaheer (9) and Majid (39) all fell hooking as Walsh in particular got the ball to lift off a length with alarming regularity. At 96-5 Pakistan's innings was in danger of imploding, but Asif and Imran built an important stand that took the score to 134-5 at tea, and a lead of 191; the wheels fell off after the break though. Asif, trying to leave Walsh's first ball after tea, played on for 32, Akram lost his leg stump to the same bowler for 1, then Gibbs found some turn to sweep away the tail to finish with figures of 3-5 off 6.2 overs as Pakistan collapsed to 146 all out, the last five wickets having tumbled for 12 runs after the interval.

Walsh and Gibbs had bowled West Indies back into the match, and they now faced a target of 204 to secure their first ever ATG victory over Pakistan. Bad light brought day four to a premature close only three overs into the West Indies' innings, and with rain forecast for the final day the tourists would be battling the elements as well as a hostile track and a deteriorating wicket. Wasim Akram removed Greenidge and Richards early, but Haynes and Weekes took West Indies to within one ball of lunch at which time Haynes, on 43, feathered a rising delivery from Imran to give Wasim Bari his hundredth ATG victim and to leave the match on a knife edge once more, West Indies 88-3 and still 116 away from victory.

Weekes held firm in the afternoon and nudged past 50 for the first time in the series, but just when it looked as though West Indies were going to be able to engage cruise control, three wickets fell in the blink of an eye and the outcome was back in the melting pot again. Asif removed Weekes for 54, his off pole flattened with a beauty that jagged away sharply off the seam, Lloyd (15) slammed a return catch to Qadir after lofting the previous ball for six and Sobers was cleaned up by Waqar for just 6 to leave the innings teetering at 136-6, still 68 runs short of the winning post.

The tension was becoming almost unbearable, but Dujon and Marshall batted sensibly in adding 27 for the seventh wicket until Qadir gated the former for 12 with an excellent googly, and at 163-7 it would surely now have to be down to Marshall and Holding to see West Indies home, with only Gibbs and Walsh to come. The same pair had added a valuable 51 in the first innings, and once again they batted calmly, despite a succession of appeals and close shaves, generated in the main by the enigmatic Qadir, but at 190-7, just 14 runs away from victory, the promised rain finally fell and the teams spent an agonizing half hour in the pavilion until the umpires deemed conditions fit to resume.

We were now into the final hour, but with the skies still leaden it was highly doubtful that all the overs would be bowled, so Holding took it upon himself to wrap up proceedings quickly. A towering six off Qadir raised the 200 and took West Indies to within two runs of victory, and a dismissive drive through mid off in Akram's next over sealed the deal, giving West Indies their first ever triumph over Pakistan in eleven attempts and squaring the series at 1-1 with one to play. Marshall finished on 35*, Holding - who has now scored 175 runs in the series at an average of 58 - finished on 22*, and the pair had added a steely, undefeated 44 to see their side home. It had been a finish for the ages in Peshawar, and the stage is now set for the grandest of finales in Lahore.

Scores
PAK 1st Inns 385 (Majid Khan 130, Zaheer Abbas 89, Imran Khan 48; Marshall 4-93)
WI 1st Inns 328 (Haynes 62, Richards 62, Greenidge 51)
PAK 2nd Inns 146 (Walsh 4-37)
WI 2nd Inns 207-7 (Weekes 54, Haynes 43)

WEST INDIES WON BY 3 WICKETS


Man of the Match: MD Marshall

Pakistan v West Indies - Second Test

Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad

Pakistan: Hanif Mohammad, Saeed Anwar, Majid Khan, Javed Miandad, Zaheer Abbas, Asif Iqbal, *Imran Khan, Wasim Akram, +Wasim Bari, Abdul Qadir, Waqar Younis.
West Indies: CG Greenidge, DL Haynes, IVA Richards, EdeC Weekes, *CH Lloyd, OG Smith, +PJL Dujon, MD Marshall, MA Holding, LR Gibbs, CA Walsh.

Debuts: OG Smith (WI)
Umpires: DR Shepherd (ENG) & AR Crafter (AUS)
Toss: West Indies

West Indies needed a big improvement after their lacklustre showing in Karachi, and with Garry Sobers still sidelined, Collie Smith would make his debut in Faisalabad after being flown out to bolster the touring party's reserves. Pakistan also made changes, with both Wasim Bari and Abdul Qadir earning recalls at the expense of Moin Khan and Iqbal Qasim.

Clive Lloyd won his first toss as skipper and elected to bat, but an inordinately slow paced wicket at the Iqbal Stadium made strokeplay difficult, and West Indies struggled their way to a disappointing total of 272 before their innings came to an end shortly before tea on day two. Lloyd himself tried to up the pace with a fluent 60, but the innings was held together by Des Haynes, who batted nearly eight hours for his 104 before falling to Majid's part time off breaks. Six different bowlers took wickets for Pakistan, but Clive Lloyd's attack responded in kind as West Indies hauled themselves straight back into the match in dramatic fashion.

Pakistan slumped to 55-4 at the close of the second day, Malcolm Marshall having become just the second bowler after Bill O'Reilly to claim 200 ATG wickets when he had Hanif caught by Haynes at short leg for 6, and it took a truly magnificent century from Zaheer Abbas on day three to keep Pakistan in sight of the tourists. Zaheer stroked his way to 118 out of Pakistan's eventual total of 208, the next highest score being 27 from Abdul Qadir batting at number ten, and in the context of the game it was one of the best centuries you are likely to see. Qadir - dropped on 6 by Marshall - helped Zaheer add 81 for the ninth wicket, by far the highest partnership of the innings and a Pakistani record, and after Collie Smith had taken two wickets in his first over to reduce Pakistan to 127-8, including the wicket of Akram with his very first ball, they were crucial runs.

Nonetheless, West Indies still held a 64 run advantage on first innings, and with the wicket hardening that lead was extended by almost 300 runs on a nip-and-tuck fourth day. Haynes had followed his first innings century with a duck on the previous evening, and with Greenidge - courtesy of a stunning catch by Majid - Richards and Weekes all departing relatively cheaply, it was nightwatchman Michael Holding that provided the impetus for West Indies with a stunning assault on the bowling. Qadir disappeared for 44 runs off 6 overs as Holding flayed a career high 70 from 107 balls before Akram removed him, and from 138-5 Clive Lloyd steered the innings away from danger with his fourth consecutive fifty of the series.

Wickets continued to fall at the other end though, and at 207-8 Pakistan were still very much in the hunt. However, Lloyd was playing a true captain's innings, and the last two wickets added a further 95 runs as West Indies moved into a seemingly impregnable position. A ninth wicket partnership with cousin Lance Gibbs (15) put on 55, then Walsh somehow survived for nearly an hour for 11* as the tenth wicket added a further 40 unbeaten runs and Lloyd completed a well earned century. Lloyd had extended the innings into the fifth day in order to reach three figures though, and when he declared at 302-9, Pakistan were left with an unlikely target of 367 to win, with the main question being whether Lloyd had left enough time to claim ten wickets.

That question seemed to have been answered when outside edges from Saeed Anwar (2) and Majid (0) left Pakistan floundering at 3-2, and had Weekes been able to hold an edge from Hanif off Holding, the hosts would have been in even deeper trouble. As it was, Hanif and Javed were able to rally with a stand of 107, but the run outs of Hanif (45) and Zaheer (6) tipped the balance back towards West Indies, with Pakistan teetering at 124-4. Asif hit the ground running though, and despite losing Javed for 70 courtesy of a dubious caught behind decision given by umpire Shepherd, the innings actually gathered momentum and thoughts started to turn towards a miraculous home win.

Asif carved his way to the third fastest fifty in ATG history (38 balls), and the score was taken to 251-5 in partnership with Imran, just 116 away from victory with 23 overs still to be bowled. Lloyd now threw the ball to Michael Holding, and 'Whispering Death' responded by killing Pakistan's chase with the wickets of Imran (31), Akram (2) and Wasim Bari (4), leaving Pakistan on 265-8 with 15 overs still to be bowled. Asif completed a wonderful century from just 98 balls, his presence at the crease maintaining Pakistan's hopes of survival, and when Dujon failed to reach an edge off Holding, both Asif's and Pakistan's chances of holding on for the draw increased significantly. Abdul Qadir batted resolutely for the second time in the match, and with West Indies' bowlers finally running out of steam the game ended in a draw, with Pakistan 58 short of victory on 309-8.

It had been a classic Test, with fortunes changing at regular intervals, and after a soporific opening we were treated to three and a half days of cricket that was truly for the connoisseur. Lloyd's delayed declaration and a couple of dropped catches cost West Indies dear on the final day, but outstanding innings from Zaheer and Asif secured the draw that maintains Pakistan's 1-0 series lead with two Tests still to play.

Scores
WI 1st Inns 272 (Haynes 104, Lloyd 60)
PAK 1st Inns 208 (Zaheer Abbas 118)
WI 2nd Inns 302-9 dec. (Lloyd 104*, Holding 70; Waqar Younis 4-70)
PAK 2nd Inns 309-8 (Asif Iqbal 126*, Javed Miandad 70, Hanif Mohammad 45; Holding 4-55)

MATCH DRAWN

Man of the Match: Zaheer Abbas

Pakistan v West Indies - First Test

National Stadium, Karachi

Pakistan: Hanif Mohammad, Saeed Anwar, Majid Khan, Javed Miandad, Zaheer Abbas, Asif Iqbal, *Imran Khan, +Moin Khan, Wasim Akram, Iqbal Qasim, Waqar Younis.
West Indies: CG Greenidge, DL Haynes, GA Headley, EdeC Weekes, IVA Richards, *CH Lloyd, +PJL Dujon, MD Marshall, MA Holding, LR Gibbs, CA Walsh.

Debuts: Nil
Umpires: VK Ramaswamy (IND) & LP Rowan (AUS)
Toss: Pakistan

West Indies' chances of recording their first ATG victory over Pakistan were dealt a huge blow before a ball was even bowled in Karachi, with skipper Garry Sobers forced to withdraw with a shoulder injury that ended a run of 49 consecutive appearances, and by the end of the first day matters were even worse for the tourists after they had been bowled out for just 228, having been inserted on an unusually green wicket at the National Stadium.

Greenidge fell to the very first ball of the series, caught by Zaheer off Akram, Headley also departed for a duck to leave West Indies 4-2, and although partnerships of 79 between Haynes and Weekes and 67 between Lloyd and Dujon threatened to restore some equilibrium, Imran's astute captaincy ensured that Pakistan never lost their grip on proceedings. Lloyd's soft dismissal for 54 to a miscued cover drive off Majid was a key moment, and from 197-5 the innings folded to 228 all out, with the unlikely figure of Asif Iqbal the main destroyer. Asif had nibbled the ball around all day in conditions that suited his medium pace, and he finished off the innings by becoming the first player in ATG history to claim three wickets in an over, sending back Dujon, Gibbs and Walsh in a spell that read .2W4WW, finishing with his best analysis in ATG Tests.

Day two was topped and tailed by stoppages for bad light and rain, but in the play that was possible Hanif's 74 laid a solid foundation for Pakistan, and with West Indies' pacemen finding no movement at all, day three belonged completely to the hosts as Javed Miandad took centre stage. After scores of 214*, a national record 248 and 177 in the recent series in the Caribbean, Javed batted all day for another double century as Pakistan's total swelled from 183-3 overnight to 487-5 by the close, with 236 runs coming in partnership with Zaheer, Pakistan's highest stand for any wicket. Both batsmen used their feet well against the spin of Gibbs, who sent down 75 overs over the course of the innings as West Indies struggled without the option of Sobers' bowling, and although Zaheer eventually fell four short of a deserved century, Javed powered on into the fourth day, now in the company of skipper Imran.

Pakistan soon passed their previous highest ATG total of 555, and shortly after lunch on day 4 Javed broke his own national record of 248 before finally falling to Marshall for 284, having added 197 with Imran, a Pakistan record for the sixth wicket. Imran was on 88* at the time but unselfishly declared upon the fall of Javed, and Pakistan's gargantuan total of 648-6 gave them a lead of 420 with four and a half sessions still to play. After over 13 hours in the field West Indies could have been forgiven for a repeat of their first innings ineptitude, but they lost only Greenidge on their way to an overnight total of 123-1, and escaping with a draw was still very much a possibility.

Wickets fell at regular intervals on the final day however, including that of Haynes for a well-crafted 78, and although Richards - who took 22 off one over from Asif - and Lloyd both contributed half centuries at better than a run a ball, it was graft that was needed and unfortunately none was forthcoming. Pakistan fans were made to sweat after tea as first rain and then a stubborn late stand between Marshall (24) and Holding (26) threatened to spoil the party, but Imran brought himself back to clean up the tail, and with seven overs left he completed a pair for Courtney Walsh to hand Pakistan victory by an innings and 90 runs. Imran's team thoroughly deserved to take the spoils, and with the attack that decimated South Africa seemingly rendered impotent on the subcontinent, West Indies suddenly find themselves in a real contest. Garry Sobers' absence left their team unbalanced, and a remedy needs to be found ahead of the second Test in Faisalabad.

Scores
WI 1st Inns 228 (Lloyd 54, Dujon 51, Weekes 48; Asif Iqbal 5-43)
PAK 1st Inns 648-6 dec. (Javed Miandad 284, Zaheer Abbas 96, Imran Khan 88*, Hanif Mohammad 74)
WI 2nd Inns 330 (Haynes 78, Richards 55, Lloyd 54; Imran Khan 4-52)

PAKISTAN WON BY AN INNINGS & 90 RUNS


Man of the Match: Javed Miandad