West Indies vs Pakistan 2017: 1st Test - Day 1, 5 Talking Points
West Indies overcame a top order batting slump that saw them slip to 71/5 before Roston Chase and Shane Dowrich helped them recover to 244/7 at stumps on Day 1 at Sabina Park in Kingston. Pakistan won the toss and chose to field with the possibility of seam movement hovering.
Mohammad Abbas, on debut, and Mohammad Amir swung the ball both ways and had West Indies in all sorts of trouble. The top order succumbed soon enough as Amir generated some of his infamous inswingers while Abbas and Wahab Riaz offered great support.
However, Roston Chase and Shane Dowrich resurrected the innings from 71/5 with an 118-run stand that was dull and not-pleasing-to-the-eye but served the purpose. Both of them smacked half-centuries and looked set for a bigger one when Wahab Riaz pulled off a blinder to send back Chase. Yasir Shah got rid off Dowrich the next ball and it took some hitting from Holder and Bishoo to ensure West Indies reached a total of respectability at stumps.
Brief Scores: West Indies 244/7 (Chase 63, Dowrich 56, Amir 3/28)
Take a glance at the major talking points from Day 1 at Kingston.
#5 Debutant gets Brathwaite in the first over
Mohammad Abbas and Kraigg Brathwaite were on opposite ends of the spectrum before the Test began. The Sialkot-born seamer is playing his first Test match while the West Indian opener was the architect of their win the last time these two sides played a Test.
In a cricket match, history and experience never count. It all depends on who dominates on a particular day and Abbas once again underlined this fact in his first Test over. In his second ball, he had Brathwaite edging to Younis Khan at second slip to leave the West Indies in trouble early on.
Brathwaite, a watchful opener, is not someone to hang out his bat early in a Test innings particularly with the movement on offer. However, the shortish line and late movement saw him misjudge the shot as the ball caught the edge and went through to second slip.