5 things West Indies must do to save the second Test against Pakistan
The only bright moment for the West Indies in their tour to the United Arab Emirates was quickly shut out as Yasir Shah took a return catch to send back the only shining light in the West Indies' line-up, Darren Bravo. They have had a wretched tour under a captain whose position is bound to come under heavy scrutiny.
A series whitewash loss in a format they excel in, T20s, started off the campaign. The formats changed as T20s made way for its bigger brother, ODIs, but the results remained the same. Another 3-0 loss created further chaos. The opening day-night Test showed a bit of a fightback from the West Indies, but despite Darren Bravo and Devendra Bishoo playing their heart out, luck did not favour the away side.
We come to Abu Dhabi, the venue for the second Test between the two teams. The West Indies will need to remind themselves that they are not the best of Test teams going around and with talks of the introduction of tiers and conferences in Test cricket going on, the Windies will need to show they are no pushovers. Let us take a look at a few things the men from the Caribbean will have to correct to save the second Test.
#1 The opening pair
Leon Johnson and Kraigg Brathwaite promised much with solid but slow starts in both innings. But neither could carry on after playing out the early period. While Brathwaite is a highly talented and established opener, Johnson is yet to stamp down his spot at the top of the order.
Both the openers fell to Yasir Shah in the first innings after overcoming a tight start Mohammad Amir and Sohail Khan.
In the second innings, it was Amir who accounted for the duo with some well-directed deliveries at the stumps. Johnson and Brathwaite will have to provide a good start for West Indies to compile competing totals. Unless they provide a foundation for the Windies, the second Test will lead to a similar result.