Motie, Warrican star as Windies take nine-run lead vs Pakistan

MULTAN, Pakistan : Gudakesh Motie and Jomel Warrican’s brilliant all-round performances earned West Indies a nine-run, first-innings lead against Pakistan as 20 wickets fell on the opening day of the second Test on January 25.

Motie scored 55 and his first Test half century lifted the tourists from a precarious 54-8 to 163 all out. The left-arm spinner then picked up 3-49 to skittle out the home team for 154 on another tricky turner at Multan Cricket Stadium.

Motie’s all-round show overshadowed Noman Ali’s hat trick for Pakistan and 6-41 as Pakistan's batters fell in their own spin-pitch trap with Warrican, who earlier made an unbeaten 36 at No 11, picking up 4-43.

Mohammad Rizwan (49) and Saud Shakeel (32) revived Pakistan with a 68-run fifth-wicket stand. Both fell to Warrican in the final session while going for ambitious shots and Pakistan's tail folded quickly just before stumps.

Motie had claimed the prize wicket of Babar Azam (1), who was bowled while going for a cut shot on the back foot, and Kamran Ghulam (16) to leave Pakistan reeling at 51-4. Kemar Roach struck with the new ball and had Muhammad Hurraira leg before wicket and then uprooted the off stump of captain Shan Masood.

Earlier, No 9 Motie added 109 runs with the last two batters before West Indies got bowled out in an extended three-hour first session after Ali had flattened the top-order with his left-arm spin.

Ali, who masterminded Pakistan’s 127-run win in the first Test with Sajid Khan, had the wickets of Justin Greaves, Tevin Imlach and Kevin Sinclair in the 12th over to become the first Pakistan spinner to achieve a hat trick in test matches.

Just like in the first Test when West Indies got bowled out for 137 and 123 to lose inside three days against spin, their top-order batters had little clue how to combat the three spinners on another raked wicket.

But Motie frustrated Pakistan in his 11th Test match as he combined in a gritty 41-run stand with Roach (25) and then compiled another 68 runs with Warrican.

Debutant fast bowler Kashif Ali found the outside edge of Mikyle Louis’ bat after captain Kraigg Brathwaite had won the toss and elected to bat.

Off-spinner Sajid Khan had debutant Amir Jangoo trapped leg before wicket for a four-ball duck and Ali made an immediate impact by pinning Brathwaite lbw.

Noman Ali then bowled a dream triple wicket maiden over when Greaves was caught close to the wicket by Babar; Imlach didn’t go for a lbw television review when he missed Ali’s full pitched delivery; and Babar grabbed another stunning low catch off Sinclair’s bat in the gully to the delight of the left-arm spinner.

Four Pakistan fast bowlers — Wasim Akram, Abdul Razzaq, Mohammad Sami and Naseem Shah — had previously achieved hat tricks in test matches with Akram doing it twice against Sri Lanka in 1999.

Naseem was the previous Pakistani bowler to do so against Bangladesh at Rawalpindi in 2020.

West Indies made two changes and brought in fast bowler Roach in place of injured paceman Jayden Seals. No 3 batter Jangoo made his Test debut and replaced struggling Keacy Carty.

It is the last series for both teams in the World Test Championship with Pakistan at No 8 and West Indies at No 9. Australia and South Africa have already qualified for the WTC final at Lord’s in June. AP

Scores

WEST INDIES 163 in 41.1 overs (Gudakesh Motie 55, Jomel Warrican 36 not out, Kemar Roach 25, Kavem Hodge 21; Noman Ali 6-41, Sajid Khan 2-64).

PAKISTAN 154 in 47 overs (Mohammad Riswan 49, Saud Shakeel 32, Kamran Ghulam 16, Shan Masood 15; Jomel Warrican 4-43, Gudakesh Motie 3-49, Kemar Roach 2-15).