Daily Times

It was an incredible victory. Pakistan were outclassed. West Indies recorded their highest successful one-day international run chase to down Pakistan by four wickets in the first contest of a three-match series on Friday at Providence Stadium in Guyana. West Indies, whose previous highest successful run chase was 300, themselves may have not planned to finish it off this way, but they did. The star of the day was Jason Mohammed whose fabulous knock overwhelmed the visitors. Chasing a formidable 309 for victory, accurate bowling by Pakistan’s pacers as well as spinners restricted West Indies to a meagre 107 in the first 25 overs. A West Indies win appeared unlikely after Kieron Powell – the only batsman who had attempted to inject any impetus into the West Indies innings in the first half – and wicketkeeper Shai Hope fell within 10 balls of each other. They were both dismissed off quality deliveries. But then Mohammed took charge, playing lusty strokes to lift the home side’s spirits. He literally put the Pakistan bowlers to sword as Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz and Hasan Ali were all on the receiving end of hammerings in the slog overs.

The Pakistan bowlers wilted under the onslaught and were unable to stanch the flow of runs in the last 10 overs. Playing the innings of his life, Mohammed’s unbeaten 91 off 58 balls guided West Indies to their first-ever victory in a one-dayer while chasing in excess of 300. Ashley Nurse gave Mohammed adequate support towards the end as Pakistan’s sizeable advantage vanished before their disbelieving eyes. Nurse, who took 4 for 62 in Pakistan’s innings, slammed 34 off 15 balls, while Mohammed ended the match with 11 fours and three sixes.

Earlier, all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez accelerated from a pedestrian start to pace Pakistan to a formidable 308 for the loss of five scalps. Amid speculation about his worth to the team, the 36-year-old contributed a top score of 88 to temporarily quell the rising tide of criticism at his position in the batting line-up. Pakistan posted an apparently impregnable total, breaking the record for the highest innings score at the Providence Stadium. Their innings came to life in the last 10 overs – they smashed 92 — after falling away briefly in the middle overs. Their success at keeping wickets in hand, combined with the brilliant ball-striking of Shoaib Malik ensured they went past the 303 that had been the record for this ground. The groundwork was laid by Ahmad Shahzad and Hafeez after Pakistan were put in to bat on a newly laid surface.

Mohammed’s half-century, his third of the year, was the bedrock of West Indies’ record chase. Their come-from-behind win was very brave but Pakistan should have been able to defend their total. West Indies played really well. They took their time and they chased beautifully, they put Sarfraz Ahmed and his charges under pressure at the back end and then got over the line. What disappointing was that Pakistan were not able to execute properly in the last 10 overs and their main bowlers fell short of the mark. Spinner Shadab Khan, making his ODI debut after an outstanding T20 series, provided what seemed the critical breakthroughs but Pakistan captain Sarfraz paid a heavy price for relying on his faster bowlers to complete victory. In the absence of their Indian Premier league superstars, West Indies had never thought in their wildest dreams that they were about to put on a second innings show that will live not just long in the memory, but immortally in the record books.