Picture Credit: Twitter
Although Pakistan eventually lost the opening Test of the two-match series against West Indies by a margin of just 1 wicket, the match had several superb moments on the field. Wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan’s catch to get rid of the home teams' Jomel Warrican towards the end of the match was definitely one of the highlights of the game and even took the visiting team closer to a win but the last batting pair of the Windies took the side home.
It was Hasan Ali, the Pak speedster, who was bowling when the incident happened. With Pakistan needing two wickets to win, Ali bowled a short-pitched delivery which Warrican tried to pull but managed to get a top edge. Although there was a fine leg fielder stationed who might have reached there, Rizwan decided to go for the catch covering the meters and doing the job safely.
Eventually, Rizwan made it courtesy of a full-length dive. His teammates on the field and even in the dressing room were happy as they sensed a chance to win the match owing to that outstanding effort from their keeper. Although he had failed to deliver the bat, his keeping was spot in.
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Post the wicket, Kemar Roach ensured that West Indies reached their target of 168. While wickets kept falling, Roach somehow managed to absorb the pressure. It was Jayden Sealed who was adjudged the Player of the Match as he became the youngest West Indian to get a fifer.
"This is the beauty of Test cricket. We did well with batting, but we didn’t carry on with the momentum in the first innings. The bowlers did well, and then again we lost momentum with quick wickets in the second innings. It was difficult to score, it was swinging and seaming, the outfield was slow, and their bowlers bowled in the channel," Pakistan captain Babar Azam was quoted as saying after the match.
"We were patient and wanted to build a partnership. Hasan, Shaheen, and Abbas were good throughout, and we took our catches, but we did drop two in the final session which might have made the difference," he added.
The second and final Test match of the series is scheduled to get underway on August 20, Friday. After facing a narrow defeat in the first Test, the Men in Green would hope to make a comeback and level the series.