West Indies had plenty of positives to reflect upon from the first game. But the bowling wasn’t as incisive
Pakistan’s Mohammad Nawaz (2ndL) and teammate Khushdil Shah (C) shake hands with West Indies’ players after their victory. Pic/AFP
Pakistan will be looking to go 2-0 up in the 3 match ODI series against West Indies when the two sides meet today in Multan. The men in green won the first ODI by chasing down West Indies’ score of 305 with 4 balls to spare.
The visitors had plenty of positives to reflect upon from the first game. Opener Shai Hope notched up his 12th ODI ton while Shamarh Brooks carried on his impressive form from the Netherlands series by scoring 70. Moreover, Rovman Powell and Romario Shepherd finished off the innings well too.
But the bowling wasn’t as incisive for the West Indies.
Pakistan’s skipper Babar Azam scored nearly a run a ball 103 and was well aided by Imam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Rizwan who hit fifties. Khushdil Shah in just his 5th ODI put the icing on the cake with a match winning 23 ball 41.
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Shadab Khan was the unheralded man of the match with his extremely economical spell of 1/37 from 10 overs. He also took a brilliant catch to end Brooks and Hope’s 154 run partnership which went on to give Pakistan the upper hand.
For the 2nd ODI, Pakistan will be looking to recreate a similar convincing performance with the bat. But the likes of Haris Rauf and Hasan Ali will have to put in much improved performances. The former went for nearly 8 runs an over while the latter gave away nearly 7 per over, Pakistan can’t afford that, especially if West Indies are chasing considering just how power packed the West Indies’ middle order is.
As for West Indies, they’ll have to recreate the perfect balance between power and placement and make sure they don’t come undone against Pakistan’s spinners. On the other hand, the likes of Alzarri Joseph, Jayden Seales and Shepherd will need to take quick wickets against Pakistan’s top order that has a knack for churning out big runs on a consistent basis.
