Pakistan, West Indies first test; clash of unpredictable (Preview)

The limited over fixtures between the two sides went without much of a drama with score line reading 3-2 in favour of Pakistan. The visitors were expected to win the series but conceding last two matches to a weakened West Indies lineup would have disappointed them. Pakistan might have won the series but they didn’t set the tour on fire and couldn’t unearth new talent which the team management was hoping for.

For West Indies that lacked experience and star players, there were more than one positive from the series. Lendl Simmons’s consistency with the bat at the top of the order and the emergence of talented leg spinner Devendra Bishoo who bamboozled Pakistan batsmen with his control, guile and variations were the highlights of the one-day series.

Now focus shifts to the ‘real’ cricket, Test matches as both teams look for resurgence in the format. Off late, not much has been achieved by the team in the test cricket with home team lurking as low as eighth in the ICC rankings. Pakistan too have nothing to show in their CV in the last two years or so save for an odd test win against Australia and England. Appointment of calm headed Misbah-ul-Haq as captain though has ignited a kind of revival as Pakistan did draw two match test series against strong South Africa following it up with a better result 1-0 against New Zealand in same number of matches.

Home team will be buoyed by their performance in the ODI series and would like to continue the same in the longer version of the game. The return of run machine Shiv Chanderpaul who was snubbed by selectors for ODI’s that led a flurry of anti-management and anti-board comments from the left hander and fit again Fidel Edwards should bolster the overall setup of the team.

All eyes will be on Simmons and Bishoo, both set for a test debut, as both have been dubbed as shinning lights for the Caribbean cricket in the times of desperation. Bishoo will complete the bowling lineup that will have fast bowling trio of Ravi Rampaul, Edwards and Kemar Roach. Skipper Darren Sammy will be expected to play as a supporting role in the bowling department and bat at number six to give team flexibility of sorts.

Chanderpaul will again be expected to shoulder the batting responsibilities and runs are due from Marlon Samuels and Ramnaresh Sarwan as well. Real treat for home team batsmen will be how they tackle off-spinner Saeed Ajmal who they found very difficult to pick during ODI’s.

For Pakistan, a major blow came days ahead of the test match when their numero uno batsman had to fly back to attend funeral of his brother. This has made batting lineup thin on experience which would mean skipper Misbah has to provide stability to the middle order. The young brigade of batsmen-Asad Shafiq, Azhar Ali and Umar Akmal- have shown a lot of promise and would need to step to the occasion to make their talent and potential count.

Bowling department will have more teeth as senior operator Umar Gul is back after opting out of first leg of the tour. He will have services of Wahab Riaz and Ajmal to help the side for elusive test series win in the West Indies. It will be toss up between left arm pacer Junaid Khan and left arm spinner Abdur Rehman and in all likelihood the nature of the wicket will determine whether Junaid makes his debut tomorrow or not.

All said and done, a tough battle between the two relatively young sides is on cards. While Windies may have their nose ahead due to home advantage, Pakistan will say they have tasted test match victories in the recent Past which home team has failed to do.

SQUADS

Pakistan

Abdur Rehman, Asad Shafiq, Azhar Ali, Hammad Azam, Junaid Khan, Misbah-ul Haq (c), Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Salman (wk), Saeed Ajmal, Tanvir Ahmed, Taufeeq Umar, Umar Akmal, Umar Gul, Wahab Riaz, Younis Khan.

West Indies

Brendan Nash, Carlton Baugh (wk), Darren Bravo, Darren Sammy (c), Devendra Bishoo, Devon Smith, Fidel Edwards, Kemar Roach, Lendl Simmons, Marlon Samuels, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Ravi Rampaul, S Chanderpaul.