West Indies vs. Pakistan 5th ODI: Five players to watch out for

Pakistan and West Indies carry the reputation of being the two most unpredictable sides in the world and they played to that tag during the course of this five-match series that oscillated with every game.

The last contest of the five-match series can give Pakistan a much-needed series victory after their disappointing display at the Champions Trophy whereas West Indies can grind out a hard-fought draw with a victory in this game.

Pakistan were slightly fortunate to come out at the right-end of the previous encounter that was interrupted by rain but there were a number of positives for the West Indies.

West Indies tweaked the batting line-up promoting Devon Smith to the top-of-the-order while moving Chris Gayle to the middle order sending the signal that consistent performances are required from all players.

Marlon Samuels, who had spent some valuable time in the middle in the exciting third ODI that ended as a tie hit, form scoring a magnificent century against a quality bowling attack whereas Lendl Simmons fired with the bat once again.

Pakistan, on the other hand, still suffered as the openers could not contribute significantly to the total. Md. Hafeez brought his drought of runs to an end scoring a half-century that proved to be match-winning in the context of the game.

Misbah-ul-Haq continued his fight as the leaders of the side scoring his 3rd half-century in the series. Pakistan will be the favourites going into the last and deciding match but they will be up against an increasingly competitive West Indian unit albeit under pressure to prevent another defeat at home this year.

Here is a list of five players who will play a critical role in the fifth ODI:

5. Chris Gayle

Gayle was demoted down to the middle-order after he failed to get any substantial scores in this series. He responded with a moderate score of 30 of 46 balls but it was certainly a contribution. He might be given the same role in the last one-day and that might not be a bad idea given that it will prevent him from being exposed to the new ball.

That has largely been his undoing against the Pakistan pace battery that has foxed him with the early swing that is available in the first hour of the game. Moreover, Gayle has the ability to handle spin during the middle overs. He can launch a counter-attack and will ensure that the run-rate does not dip.

4. Md. Hafeez

The form of Md. Hafeez with the bat would have been a major concern for Pakistan going into the fourth ODI, given the fact that he was supposed to perform the critical role of stabilising the innings at number three in the circumstance of an early dismissal.

He had a single half-century to his name in the last 11 innings prior to that game but he struck form at the right moment when Pakistan were in dire need of a win. Moreover, he had to accomplish the difficult task of playing an innings of two parts. When he came out to bat, he had to drop anchor and prevent further damage on road to a massive chase.

After the rain interruption, he had to switch to the T-20 style as Pakistan had to go at almost 10 runs an over. He managed a critical half-century but failed to finish the game. He will be hoping that he can consolidate upon that performance in the last ODI to win the series for Pakistan.

3. Sunil Narine

The mystery-spinner has had a productive last year in international cricket but ever since his match-winning spell of 4/26 in the second ODI, he has failed to take any wickets. Pakistan batsmen have preferred to play out his initial overs and have successfully attacked him at the death.

St. Lucia is not his hunting territory it seems but the bowling attack seems a lot weaker without his wicket-taking abilities. Misbah-ul-Haq in particular has been able to negate his threat during the middle overs. He needs to work a little more on his stock delivery as that will increase the effectivity of his more rarely used variations.

2. Misbah-ul-Haq

Misbah-ul-Haq has scored 197 runs in this series at an average of over 65.00 runs. The effectivity of these runs has been greater as they have come while batting at number four. He has dropped the anchor in the middle overs allowing players like Shahid Afridi and Umar Akmal to make best of the slog overs.

However, his inability to rotate the strike and get frequent boundaries was a problem as his strike rate was appallingly low. He proved that he could play the situation in the last match when Pakistan were pursuing a steep chase in the rain-interrupted match.

Misbah-ul-Haq finished with 53 runs of just 43 balls remaining undefeated and guiding the team to the required total with one over to spare. He will be expected to replicate that performance in the last ODI.

1. Marlon Samuels

Marlon Samuels played an uncharacteristic knock in the third ODI as West Indies gave chase to Pakistan’s total of 229. He played 106 balls for his 46 runs as he curbed his natural instincts, limited his range of stroke-play and dropped the anchor allowing Lendl Simmons to play the role of the aggressor.

That innings played a crucial role in securing a tie for the West Indies whereas he backed that effort with a marvellous knock of 106 of just 104 balls to take West Indies to a total of 261.

It was the highest total secured by either of the teams in this series and it was only due to the rain-interruption that Pakistan were able to chase it down without much difficulty. Samuels must capitalise upon his form especially given the fact that the rest of the batting order is short on form.