West Indies were below par against Pakistan in all formats, but they managed to script their first win in the final match of the tour, winning the third Test match by five wickets on Thursday. Despite that win, Pakistan clinched the series after their comfortable victory in the first two Tests.
West Indies witnessed a target of 153 runs in the fourth innings, which was always going to be achievable if their batsmen showed some determination to stay at the wicket. Things did not look too good for West Indies as they lost wickets at regular intervals, as Yasir Shah with his trickery and Wahab Riaz with his tight line and length dismissed five wickets for 67 runs on the board.
Hence, the chase looked much more interesting, but a solid partnership between Kraigg Brathwaite and Shane Dowrich played an important role in helping them cross the finishing line. The duo should be applauded for their special batting efforts against the Pakistan bowlers, who have been rampant in the Test series.
Barthwaite and Dowrich scored 60 runs each to help their captain Jason Holder finally win his first Test as captain of West Indies. Brathwaite had also scored a brilliant ton in the first innings.
The skipper was full of praise for Brathwaite, who shouldered major responsibility to steer West Indies to their first win in 14 Tests. Holder believes that they are a team in transition, and they can achieve greater things if his players can support one another in the future as well.
"We showed character and fight. Credit must go to Kraigg Brathwaite. He played an outstanding innings in the first innings and took responsibility in the second innings. Lost the toss, but Shannon Gabriel was outstanding for us with the new ball. That helped us take the momentum. It feels good to contribute to the team win," Holder said during the presentation ceremony.
"This has been a long time coming, I've had tough Test matches over the last year or so. We're a young side in transition. We've done a lot of things good this series. We just need to keep supporting one another. Yes, we'll have one or two people coming in and going out, but the longer we stay together as a group, the better it is for West Indies cricket."