West Indies got much closer to Pakistan in the day-night Test match than they did in any of the six limited overs matches they have played on this tour but ultimately it was all in vein as they slumped to another defeat. That leaves them heading to Abu Dhabi on Friday needing to win the second Test in order to keep the series alive.
Pakistan were made to work hard and wait for their win in the opening match of the series but they were rewarded with the win and they will know that if they can follow that up here they will have another series sewn up with a match to spare.
Pakistan
We saw the best and the worst of Pakistan in that first Test. They were brilliant with the bat in their first innings led of course by that wonderful triple century by Azhar Ali and then they nearly threw it away in their second innings in which Devendra Bishoo completely bamboozled them.
In many ways though it was a masterclass in why Pakistan are so hard to beat in this format. They pile up first innings runs and they have a bowling attack which offers nothing in the way of respite and that is a trait that all the top sides have in the longest form of the game. They also have a captain who reads key moments well as we saw in that final session of the last day.
West Indies
It had taken almost a month but for the first time on this tour we saw that the West Indies could be competitive in patches in that first Test. The key for them now is to take those moments where they were competitive and build on them to get themselves into winning positions. That is easier said than done though.
Their efforts were led by two excellent individual performances from Darren Bravo and Devendra Bishoo and if their teammates can come to the party over the next couple of matches they could yet come out of the series with some sort of positive result. West Indies know what to expect now but need to install a consistency in their game.
Team News
Despite such a win in the first Test, Pakistan are likely to make changes for this match. Younis Khan has recovered from the fever which kept him out of the first Test and is set to return while Zulfiqar Babar is also in line for a recall.
West Indies might think about adding another spinner to their ranks with the seamers having little effect in the opening match. That could mean a return to the side for Jomel Warrican with one of Miguel Cummins or Shannon Gabriel missing out.
Sheikh Zayed Stadium
This is quite a new ground to Test cricket with this being just the ninth match to be held here. Pakistan have played in each of the previous eight matches here and they haven’t been beaten. They have four wins and four defeats. West Indies play here for the first time in this format of the game but they have already taken two beatings in the limited overs matches here on this tour.
This is a typical UAE wicket which is a road for the early parts of the match but as the sun bakes down the dust arrives and the track becomes very tough to face spin on. Both sides will know exactly what to expect in that regard.
Betting
From a viewing point of view it was good to see the Windies a little more competitive in the first Test but despite that I still expect Pakistan to win this match. If anything how close the Windies got to causing an upset will have sharpened Pakistan up and focused their minds. I’m no backer at 2/5 but having backed Pakistan to win the series 3-0 I don’t need to be.
Pakistan have run up scores way in excess of 500 in their last three first innings on this ground and I’m expecting the runs to arrive in big number here and the one man who might well deliver more than some is Sami Aslam.
I’ve been really impressed with Aslam ever since we saw him come into the side at Edgbaston. If there is a criticism it is that he needs to push his starts into substantial scores but that will come when he feels comfortable I’m sure. His runs line in the first innings here is 29.5 which looks on the low side.
We know the wicket will be good, he covered this total in both innings in the first Test and he made a ton in a First-class match prior to that opening Test so his form is clearly very good. All the numbers point to him making at least 30 in the first dig.
Tips
Back S.Aslam – Over 29.5 first innings runs for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with Ladbrokes
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