Kyle Mayers registered his third straight ‘duck’ to sum up West Indies’ display in the first session on Monday’s fourth day of the second Test at Sabina Park.
At lunch, the home side were tottering on 123 for eight, still 179 runs in arrears, following Pakistan’s first innings declaration late on the previous evening at 302 for nine.
Nkrumah Bonner made 37 while fellow Jamaican Jermaine Blackwood chipped in with 33, the pair putting on 60 for the fifth wicket before things fell apart as four wickets went down for only 11 runs.
At the heart of Pakistan’s attack was exciting left-arm seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi who added two more wickets to his tally to claim four for 40 while pacer Mohammad Abbas has so far taken three for 29.
Nightwatchman Alzarri Joseph fell in the morning’s fourth over for four after West Indies resumed on 39 for three, taken low down at third slip by captain Babar Azam off Afridi, with only six runs added.
Blackwood joined Bonner, who resumed on 18, in a gritty stand to keep Pakistan’s bowlers without further immediate success.
Bonner faced 116 balls and struck half-dozen fours while Blackwood also counted six fours in his 50-ball knock.
Abbas eventually got the breakthrough in the first over of his second spell, when he removed Bonner and Mayers to catches at the wicket off successive deliveries.
Bonner nicked an uncertain prod at the fifth ball and claimed Mayers in identical fashion off the next ball. The left-handed Mayers suffered the embarrassment of a ‘pair’ in the opening Test last week.
Photo: CMC
Afridi then got Blackwood to fend a short ball to gully where Fawad Alam completed a brilliant diving catch to his right before Abbas hit Joshua Da Silva in front for six.
CMC
