West Indies vs Pakistan 2017, 2nd Test: Day 3, 5 talking points
Misbah-ul-Haq once again found himself one short of a hundred in his final Test series as Pakistan eased to 393 and a healthy lead of 81, half of which was erased by West Indies for the loss of a wicket by stumps on day 3.
Azhar Ali smashed yet another hundred but it was Misbah who stole the limelight. The veteran Pakistani skipper gloved a ball from Holder to the slip cordon on 99. It became the second time in his final series that he couldn't complete a hundred; in the first Test, he was stranded on 99 after he ran out of partners.
West Indies edged back into the game by running through the lower middle-order to reduce Pakistan to 329/7. However, Yasir Shah and the tail added some crucial runs to give the visitors an 81 run lead, sizeable given the state of the deteriorating pitch. West Indies were 40/1 in response at stumps.
Brief Scores: West Indies 312/10 & 40/1 (Hetmyer 22*), Pakistan 393/10 (Azhar Ali 105, Misbah 99, Gabriel 4/81)
Take a look through the talking points of the day.
#5 Misbah's misfortune with 99
Misbah-ul-Haq is one of the finest batsmen in the Pakistan middle-order. A strong fighter, the Pakistani skipper can switch between defence and attack in the blink of an eye. Having settled down with Azhar Ali quite slowly in the first session, Misbah broke loose in the second with a couple of typical slog shots.
He was particularly harsh on the spinners and milked them for runs with ease. At 99, Misbah would have hoped to complete a hundred after having missed out just in the previous Test. But luck did not favour the captain as a ball from his opposite number, Jason Holder, reared up to smack his gloves en route to the second slip fielder.
What's with Misbah and 99? It was the third time in his Test career that he was stuck on the score.