Pakistan won by 133 runs
PLAYER OF THE MATCH : Yasir Shah
Batter
Bowler
On a pitch too beautiful for Test cricket, with a somewhat ageing batting order, and against a West Indian side rejuvenated by a refreshing fightback in Dubai, Pakistan have reiterated their bowling supremacy. A grind of a win but a sweet one nonetheless. Now off to Sharjah for the 3rd Test.. until then, your commentator Pratyush Sinha bids farewell. And so do my co-commentators: Raju Peethala, Abhinand and Kumar Abhisekh Das. Keep watching this space, cheers and ta-ta!
Misbah-ul-Haq - captain, Pakistan: "It wasn't easy on a wicket like this. Getting 20 wickets is a challenge. The bowlers worked really hard, especially Yasir Shah, and the fast bowlers contributed well to get the 20 wickets we needed. It's important for the younger guys to come in; they have to know how we are playing, how to utilize out resources and how to play the games. If you don't know how to win a game, there's no point playing any format of the game. Once you see that and then believe in yourself, then it is good. I believe in going out there and assessing the conditions, to decide on your game plan. Need to stay in your limits and execute your limits according to your strengths. In the UAE, you cannot change much about your planning. Slow wickets here, so you have to grind the oppositions. We are going to New Zealand and Australia, and we need to change that because conditions are different. Looking forward to that. I always believe that winning Test matches without a good bowling attack is tough. Even in Dubai, getting 20 wickets was a tough task. When you believe that your bowlers can take 20 wickets, you are always in the hunt to win a Test match. I hope they [the bowlers] keep doing it again and again for Pakistan."
Jason Holder - captain, West Indies: "We are getting to day 5, so good signs for us. Unfortunately we were not able to start well again. On the first day's play, we did not get wickets but they did not score too many runs either. We didn't bat well in the first innings. Pretty pleased with how the guys played today on day 5, showing application. Blackwood played well, mixing defence with attack. Shai Hope was composed as well but more partnerships early in the innings would have helped. We need more wickets upfront, with some improvement needed in the fielding too. We have let ourselves down on the field at crucial times, when we dropped Misbah and Younis in the first innings, and those things hurt. Such good batsmen make you pay, especially on a surface with not much assistance for the bowlers. Credit to bowlers for coming back on the second day, bowling hard to bowl them out for 450 odd runs. We need hold those chances and be more penetrative at crucial moments. Pakistan are a quality side. They are not number 2 for no reason; they play good cricket. They execute their plans and that's what good teams do. We have to get to that stage. We are in the planning stage, not yet in the execution stage. We are not as consistent as we would like to be. We are sure we can do it. The guys in the dressing room need to get some confidence."
Yasir Shah - Man of the Match: I tried to bowl at one spot. Wherever I play, in UAE or away, people have expectations, and rightly so. This was a slow wicket. I bowled a few bad balls, was finding it difficult, but I bowled in the nets and tried to work on it, and on my repeatable action as well. I plan separately for every series, and the senior players - Misbah, Younis and even Mushy - keep guiding me and supporting me. I keep in touch with the latter. (translated from Urdu/Hindi)
Presentation follows..
1:56pm local: They cannot be beaten in Abu Dhabi. Won a good toss, yes, and West Indies should have been hardly in it once 452 was on the board in the first innings, but they fought well by batting the highest number of overs any visiting team has batted in the UAE in the 2nd innings - quite a feat. Yasir Shah walks back with a stump as a souvenir, and with a 10-wicket haul in the match, that ruled out the pitch in favour of genius. Rahat Ali and Sohail Khan were good sidekicks with reverse swing. 2-0 ahead are Pakistan, with a Test to go at Sharjah. Bring it on.
END OF OVER 108
4 Runs
WI: 322 - 10
1 0 2 1 0 W
Shannon Gabriel
7 (8)
D Bishoo
26 (53)
Z Babar
22-5-51-2
Babar to Devendra Bishoo, out Caught by Misbah!! How do you? How do you stop Pakistan here in the UAE? They have another series win here, against West Indies, with a Test to go. Cannot be more convincing. And what more, the slog-sweep - as ferocious as it was, given the flight that tempted it - was top-edged to Misbah at mid-wicket. He holds onto it, is on the ground and is smiling. Devendra Bishoo c Misbah b Babar 26(54) [4s-1]
Babar to Devendra Bishoo, THATS OUT!! Caught!!
Babar to Devendra Bishoo, no run, stays back and hunches to block a flatter ball
Babar to S Gabriel, 1 run, pushed one to mid-off and runs. Just runs. He better do
Babar to S Gabriel, 2 runs, that was nowhere near the middle. Inviting flight there, and who can stop Gabriel. Gives it a real go, gives it a heave but manages to miscue it over mid-on.. who runs back but the ball is dipping well in front of him
Babar to S Gabriel, no run, slows it up, Gabriel plays beside his pad and defends it with soft hands
Two slips and FSL
Babar to Devendra Bishoo, 1 run, lopped very full on middle, Bishoo waits and lets out a choke to mid-on. Gabriel has the strike
END OF OVER 107
1 Runs
WI: 318 - 9
0 0 0 0 1 0
D Bishoo
25 (51)
Shannon Gabriel
4 (5)
Yasir Shah
39-5-124-6
Yasir Shah to S Gabriel, no run, slightly opened by the turn there. Only slightly. Was lunging forward and opened the face, deliberately or not, to tame the turn to slip
Yasir Shah to Devendra Bishoo, 1 run, turned round the corner for a single
Yasir Shah to Devendra Bishoo, no run, big turn across Devendra Bishoo from round the wicket. Looks to glance but is late on it. Some excitement but more in admiration of the turn there
Yasir Shah to Devendra Bishoo, no run, allows it to dip very full and is leg-side of the pitch enough to shovel it into the leg-side
Yasir Shah to Devendra Bishoo, no run, quicker this time, Bishoo is caught in his attempt to prod forward
Yasir Shah to Devendra Bishoo, no run, that's well played actually. Rubber wrists, intercepting a legbreak with a whip to short mid-wicket