West Indies vs Pakistan: 2nd ODI - 5 talking points of the match

West Indies bounced back in 2nd ODI to level the series 1-1

West Indies were humiliated by Pakistan in the first ODI, and it was difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel given the manner of that defeat, but they managed to turn it around to level the series 1-1 with a gritty performance in the second ODI.

It was not the kind of attractive cricket that we are used to seeing from the West Indies, or the kind of show that Afridi put up in the first match, but it was something that was definitely required. Dwayne Bravo received a blessing in disguise as Misbah-ul-Haq won the toss and decided to make first use of the surface.

The West Indian captain talked about the need of batting without pressure and putting a total on the board. He led the team in doing the same, remaining undefeated with a contribution of 43 valuable runs to take the side to a competitive total of 232.

Pakistan, on the other hand, failed to iron out the flaws that they have been vulnerable to in the recent past. They had failed to score a total of 200 runs in the three matches of the Champions Trophy that they played, and they only scraped through to 224 in the first match of this series.

It was thus always going to be a tough task chasing a moderate total of 232 runs on a slow wicket. Their bowling effort was not splendid either considering they gave away almost 40 runs in extras, except the spin bowling of Shahid Afridi who was miserly and threatened the batsmen throughout his spell.

Here are five talking points generated from the match:

5. Bravo!

Darren Bravo

West Indies needed a batsman to take some responsibility and anchor the innings in a side that is full of hard-hitting batsmen. Darren Bravo has been criticized for his inability get a big score and rightly so as he has only one century in over 60 ODIs. Though he did not make up for that folly of his, but he made a valuable contribution at one-down when West Indies had lost the critical wicket of Chris Gayle early on in the game.

He steadied the ship with Johnson Charles participating in an 80-run partnership. He batted through 32 overs of the innings which is exactly the kind of thing West Indies needed one of their top-order batsmen to do. West Indies will be competitive in this series if they can find a player to perform that role in every match as Pakistan have not been consistent with the bat themselves.

4. Pollard’s role

Kieron Pollard

The problem with the West Indian batting performance in the past has been that due to regular top-order meltdowns, Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard, who should ideally be playing the power-play and the last ten overs in order to score at a higher run-rate, had to cover as middle-order batsmen.

Pollard’s last five innings prior to yesterday are a testament to that as he has three ducks and no score in two-figures. Pollard was allowed to play his shots yesterday as he had a platform to build upon. His innings of 30 runs off 27 balls was cut short before he could go for the final kill, but he exhibited the kind of impact he can make in that kind of a situation.

3. Lack of partnerships

Umar Akmal scored a half-century but didn’t get any support from the other end

Pakistan failed to chase down the moderate total as they could not compile any substantial partnerships and kept losing wickets at key moments.

The biggest partnership of the innings was between Nasir Jamshed and Misbah-ul-Haq who put-up 39 runs together. Even when chasing a moderate total, they needed a batsman to bat through like Misbah did in the first match as the batting order is vulnerable to breakdowns.

Despite a half-century from Umar Akmal, the lower order failed to contribute any significant runs as West Indies brought the collapse dramatically from 103/3 to 195 all out.

2. Explosive opening pair?

Johnson Charles

It must have been a huge disappointment for West Indian fans to see Chris Gayle walk in and out without showing a fight after the humiliating loss they suffered in the prior match.

Since his ton in the first match of the tri-nation Series, his willow has been unusually quiet as he has failed to get a decent start. More disconcerting however is the manner in which he gets dismissed trying those expansive shots when he has not even assessed the conditions properly.

His opening partner Johnson Charles has shown greater resolve although he suffers from a problem that he shares with Chris Gayle as he just couldn’t rotate the strike and get the scoreboard moving. The opening pair can make a significant difference to the result of this series if they try to just bat out the first ten overs of the match.

1. Narine’s magic

Sunil Narine

Sunil Narine failed to weave any of his magic in the tri-nation series in spite of his superb home record, but he made up for that with his performance on Tuesday.

He dismissed Md. Hafeez who was looking in fine touch to get his first scalp, but made the real difference by winding up the tail in no time when a few contributions could have taken Pakistan over the line.

He picked up the key wicket of Shahi Afridi who played a match winning knock in the last game, foxing him with his subtle variations.

He finished with splendid figures taking 4 wickets for just 26 runs in his 10 allotted overs. Given the assistance the surface has been offering to spinners, Narine can play a decisive role in the rest of the series.

West Indies cricket is in dire need of a positive result at the moment as the only team they have won a series against in the last six months is Zimbabwe and that is no endorsement for what has been recently called a ‘resurgence’ of their cricketing fortunes.