West Indies vs Pakistan 2017, 3rd Test: Day 1, 5 talking points
A solid 120 run partnership between Azhar Ali and Babar Azam turned an overcast day 1 at Roseau in favour of Pakistan. The visitors lost Azam towards the end but ended up on 169/2 as bad light stopped play at Dominica in the series decider.
Despite being damp, the pitch produced considerable turn as evidenced by Roston Chase getting rid of Shan Masood, who replaced an injured Ahmed Shehzad. Bishoo almost got rid of Azam if not for a drop behind the stumps and that kind of turn would encourage Yasir Shah.
The West Indian bowlers were tidy throughout the day but did not manage to extract enough life out of the pitch to break the Azam-Ali stand. When Joseph eventually got rid of Azam, Younis Khan walked out to a guard of honour on his final Test. The veteran batsman remained unbeaten at stumps.
Brief Scores: Pakistan 169/2 (Ali 85*, Azam 55, Chase 1/27)
Take a look at the major talking points from Day 1 at Dominica.
#5 Roston Chase, the surprise bowling change
Jason Holder spun a surprise when he introduced Roston Chase, a part-time spinner in the ninth over of the Test when the conditions were still overcast and there was movement on offer. The West Indian fast bowlers were dominating and had bowled with heart when Holder made a bizarre bowling change.
Surprisingly though, Chase extracted good bounce and turn and had the Pakistani opener, Shan Masood in a tangle. The southpaw just couldn't lay bat to ball against Chase, who was helped by the footmarks of the seamers. Masood succumbed eventually, edging Chase to Holder at second slip.