West Indies Dominates as Pakistan Struggles in Chase of 254 Runs

A thrilling day of cricket in Multan saw the West Indies firmly in control of the second Test against Pakistan, leaving the former with a tough task ahead on the remaining two days. After a spirited fight on the treacherous pitch, Pakistan came and posted a strong total while chasing 254 runs in the second innings as they completely were reeling at 76/4 at the close of Day 2, still requiring 178 runs to win the match.

The West Indies had a slight lead, having secured nine runs from their first innings. However, in the eyes of everyone who witnessed the play and knew that the pitch was spinning too much in favor of spinners, the victory would have reversed dramatically in favor of Pakistan. With a history of aggressive spin bowling, Pakistan could have easily accepted opportunities to bat, but the West Indies batsmen came out with aggressive intent, opting to counter attack rather than wait for spinners from Pakistan.

Kraigg Brathwaite, the captain of West Indies, dominated the game with a half-century. He was able to take advantage of the spinners with sweeps and reverse sweeps. The early success of Brathwaite relieved his team after he had been on the right side of four DRS calls, two of which were taken by him and two by Pakistan. Brathwaite could not convert his half-century into a substantial score and was dismissed by Pakistan's Noman Ali, who had earlier taken a hat-trick in the first innings.

In the midst of this, debutant Amir Jangoo looked quite promising after a disastrous golden duck in the first innings. He seemed more settled in his second outing and added some crucial runs. His aggressive intent, though, was his downfall - risky sweeps and drives were punished by Sajid Khan to get him out.

Pakistan's spinners continued to hassle the West Indies, using up all their reviews before lunch. At their best, they could not break through fully. There were some vital contributions by the lower-order players from the West Indies: Tevin Imlach, Kevin Sinclair, Gudakesh Motie, and Jomel Warrican, who had contributed some crucial runs to take the lead for the visitors by a competitive total.

West Indies continued building on their lead with small partnerships after the lunch break. Imlach especially made significant contributions by adding a 50-run stand with Sinclair, thereby moving their lead beyond 200. However, Pakistan's bowlers bounced back to claim two more quick wickets and reduced West Indies to 145/6. Although the team lost, the visitors continued batting, and Motie and Warrican took it further to add 27 runs before the latter was dismissed.

At the end of the innings, Kemar Roach limped out to bat with an injury, scoring 11 more runs before the innings ended. Pakistan were in a lot of trouble as they needed 254 runs as the spin conditions were in favor of the West Indies bowlers.

Pakistan's chase did not get off to a great start as both openers, Shan Masood and Muhammad Hurraira, were dismissed early by Sinclair and Motie, reducing the hosts to 5/2. Babar Azam and Kamran Ghulam tried to steady the ship, but Ghulam's attempt to take on Warrican ended in his downfall. West Indies, however, maintained the pressure through a late comeback by Azam and Saud Shakeel. Sinclair once again put Azam in the pavilion just before the stumps, while Pakistan's nightwatchman, Kashif Ali, saw ten deliveries in order to send no more back to the pavilion.

At the end of play, Pakistan still required 178 runs to win, with only six wickets remaining. West Indies, on the other hand, were just six wickets away from clinching the series and securing a dominant victory.

As the match is reaching its final stages, all the onus has been on Pakistan. They would have to dig deep to win back the hope of saving it; however, the all-round West Indies and tough pitch conditions have now made it impossible for them to lose. This is going to be an exciting finish as Pakistan will try to prevent a defeat, and West Indies would look to level the series on the last day.

Brief scores:

Pakistan 154 & 76/4 (Babar Azam 31; Kevin Sinclair 2-41) behind West Indies 163 & 244 (Kraigg Brathwaite 52, Tevin Imlach 35, Kevin Sinclair 28; Sajid Khan 4-76, Noman Ali 4-80) by 178 runs