Half-centuries from Saud Shakeel and Mohammed Rizwan wrestled momentum back for Pakistan after Jayden Seales’ triple-strike had put West Indies in the box seat in Multan. On a surface tailor-made for spin, it was the fast bowler who proved the pick of the bunch, exploiting pace and slight seam movement to send debutant Mohammad Hurraira, Kamran Ghulam and Babar Azam back for single figures. Pakistan had, at that point, been reduced to 46 for 4, with West Indies looming ominously over the tail. But a gritty unbeaten 97-run rearguard for the fifth wicket, from Rizwan and Shakeel, thwarted the visitors for the rest of the day, to ensure Pakistan would end the day with a semblance of control.

After the start was delayed by four hours owing to heavy fog that enveloped the ground, Pakistan won the toss and batted first in hazy conditions with the floodlights on throughout the course of the day. Left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie bowled the first ball, an indication of how both sides perceived the pitch upon which each played three specialist spinners. Motie got rid of Pakistan captain Shan Masood early on, squeezing him down to the debutant wicketkeeper Tevin Imlach on the on side, but for the rest of the hour, it was Seales’ show.

He had been sniffing right from the outset, and got his reward when Hurraira hung his bat out and edged to the keeper. It was followed up by a beauty to remove Kamran Ghulam, who had just dispatched an outswinger to the boundary. The next ball, he attempted to shoulder arms but it seamed back into him wickedly, rapping the thigh, with Hawk-Eye showing it would have clipped the top of off.

The big fish came soon after, another glorious use of the seam. Seales hit a hard length which Babar looked to parry into the off side, but it shaped away just enough to kiss the outside edge through to Imlach. Babar would review, but, like Ghulam, he would not be reprieved.

The innings threatened to fall apart at that point, but Saud Shakeel, seasoned on surfaces like these, restored some order to proceedings for Pakistan. The sting was taken out of the quicks and the spinners negotiated deftly, while Mohammad Rizwan at the other end kept his concentration levels up as West Indies continued to prowl.

There was a notable acceleration from the pair after tea, right from when Shakeel got to his knees and swept Kevin Sinclair for four. It was a shot that brought the pair bounty through the session, giving them a release shot as the ball began to rip. The next six overs produced seven boundaries with Rizwan the chief aggressor, brave enough to use his feet to spin and ensuring the strike kept ticking over.

There remained plenty for the visitors to get excited about. A number of balls beat the outside edge by a whisker, and Shakeel popped one up dangerously close to short midwicket just shy of a half-century. But when he got there, and Rizwan followed up soon after, the milestones were both well-deserved. By now, the light had been deteriorating consistently, and midway through Kraigg Brathwaite’s first over, the light-metre came out, and the players went off. By then, Pakistan were arguably the happier side, having been dragged by Rizwan and Shakeel towards a rather less perilous position than they found themselves in after the first hour.

Brief scores:
Pakistan 143 for 4 in 41.3 overs  (Saud Shakeel 56*, Mohamed Rizwan 51*; Jayden  Seales 3-21) vs West Indies

[Cricinfo]

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