THIRD TIME IN A ROW AS PAKISTAN CLOSE IN ON A SERIES WIN

Pakistani bowlers reigned for the third time in a row as the West Indians stuttered to another low total against the visitors in the third match of the five-match One Day series.

The third game was delayed due to rainfall. The ground staff at the Kensington Oval put in a special effort to ensure that no more than 5 overs per side are lost.

The crucial toss was won by Shahid Afridi and he had little hesitation in putting the hosts in to bat first.

In the overcast conditions, the hosts were circumspect at the start of their innings for a disappointing fourth time in a row. All-rounder, Mohammad Hafeez, grabbed an important wicket of Devon Smith, the West Indian opener.

Remarkably every time the left-handed batsman has been sent off the field, he is caught leg-before-wicket (lbw) by the off-spinner who seems clueless in spotting his varieties.

The two most successful batsmen in the series for the West Indies, Darren Bravo and Lendl Simmons, added 86 runs following the fall of their team’s first wicket. Simmons was in scintillating form for the third time in the running but he failed to make the most of his form, falling for 51 runs off 64 balls.

Bravo was dismissed for 47 runs and once again it was the pinpoint accuracy of Hafeez that won him an lbw decision.

From there on, another West Indian collapse was inspiring. The middle and later order succumbed to a series of amateur strokes that defied the status of an international team comprising of professional players.

Pakistani bowlers tightened the grip and made full use of the West Indian approach. Marlon Samuels who was recalled at the start of the tour continued his lean trot.

Samuels was bowled by Junaid Khan, giving the left-handed bowler his first wicket in ODI cricket in his third game.

Kirk Edwards was run out after a promising start to his innings, while the West Indian day was summed up by the dismissal of captain, Darren Sammy, and Dwayne Bravo, both scooped catches to deep mid-on in one over, bowled by Wahab Riaz.

The hosts ended up with another below par score of 171 and they would now need to bowl out of their skins if they are to hold Pakistan back.

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Darren Sammy disappointed with West Indies in St. Lucia, Shahid Afridi aims to seal series in Barbados

The West Indian and Pakistani captains were obviously in different moods after the second match of the five-match One Day International (ODI) series between the two teams.

The match played at Gros Islet in St.Lucia was won comfortably by the visitors, who have now taken a 2-0 lead in the series, the West Indians were ordinary with the bat and insipid with the ball, as the Men in Green cantered home to a 7-wicket win on a good batting track.

Sammy, who has been under fire from cricketing pundits in the region, stated that his team needs to improve their performance by leaps and bounds if they are to compete and make a comeback in the series. He thinks that the batsmen have let the team down in the first two games, as they failed to make good use of batting conditions scoring 221 and 220 runs only in the two innings.

He also felt that the bowlers failed to tighten their grip around the batsmen despite a low score on the board. He added that a major blip in the performance is needed if the West Indians are to fight back and make things tough for the Pakistan team.

"We could have tried to squeeze their batsmen more and when we batted we got a good start, but did not capitalize on it", Sammy said. "We weren't rolled over today. We kept ourselves in the match right to the finish. There were moments when things could have gone either way, but we didn't make it happen. We have to find a way to win those tight situations. We have to win in Barbados to stay alive in the series, so we have to grab our chances".

On the other hand, the Pakistani captain Shahid Afridi is happy with the performance of his team in the first two games. He praised the "discipline" shown by his side and added that his team has a specific plan for the second match and fortunately they succeeded in sticking to it and reaped the rewards with a comfortable win.

Afridi feels that it was a complete team effort that helped his side and if the boys continued to play with the same purpose and commitment they were set to pocket the series in the third ODI that is to be played in Barbados.

"We made a plan at our team meeting and our guys stuck to it and that was good", Afridi said. "I think our bowlers are doing a great job, and the fielding has improved because it is a very important area for us. Our batting has shown responsibility and we hope to maintain this discipline right throughout the series".

The man known as BOOM BOOM for his big hitting ability added that the team has reaped rewards of the hard work that they put in the World Cup and during the training camp set prior to the tour of West Indies.

Another encouraging thing for Afridi is the performance of his opening batsmen, Ahmed Shehzad, who posted his second century of the year and his career to take the team through to the victory target.

Shehzad was under intense pressure after an ordinary World Cup but repaid the faith shown in him by the selection panel and Afridi himself, who requested the selectors to include him in the team for the tour, as he had faith in his abilities with the bat.

The third ODI would be played on 27th April in Kensington Oval, Barbados.

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