Windies outplay depleted Pakistan

MULTAN—Marlon Samuels hit an unbeaten hundred and Chanderpaul scored a fifty navigating West Indies to an easy seven-wicket victory over Pakistan keeping visitors’ hopes alive to level the series at Multan on Wednesday.
Pakistan managed to score a respectable 209 thanks to Yasir Hameed (71) and Razzaq (33) who steered the team out of crisis after a middle order debacle at 47/4, however, Windies reached the target in just 34.5 overs with fifteen overs and a ball in spare.
Except two quick and successive dismissals of Chris Gayle and Lendl Simmons by Rana Naveedul Hassan in the third over of the innings, it was a smooth sail by the West Indies batting spearheaded by Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Marlon Samuels.
They both launched 141-run partnership steering the Windies out of troubles and then kept scoring at a good pace hitting each ball that deserved punishment. It was the highest third wicket partnership by West Indies in Pakistan surpassing the previous record of 137-run partnership between Richie Richardson and another batsman.
Samuels scored 100 runs off 99 balls and hit seventeen boundaries and a Six during his 144-minute stay at the crease. It was his second ODI hundred. Chanderpaul, who joined the team after a small gap, proved his worth and scored 60 runs off 82 balls with eight boundaries. They both took no time in settling down after the two quick dismissals and scored with liberty particularly costing high to Rao Iftikhar and Abdul Razzaq. Rao Iftikhar conceded 56 runs in 5.5 overs while Razzaq gave away 51 runs in six overs and both remained wicket-less. Chris Gayle and Chanderpaul began West Indies innings, however, in the third over, Rana Naveed clean bowled Chris Gayle deceiving him by his in-swinging yorker. The dangerous Gayle could only score nine runs of 14 balls with the help of two boundaries. Lendl Simmons was pinned before stumps on the very next ball by Rana Naveed.
However, Samuels and Chanderpaul then took reins of the game in their hands and their 141-run partnership was broken at a time when Windies needed only 58 more to win the game and captain Brian Lara did the rest of the job hitting a Six off Rao Iftikhar and then the winning stroke, a boundary. Earlier, Pakistan faced early loss when the crowd heart-throb Shahid Afridi was clean bowled by Daren Powell. Imran and Yasir built a 29-run partnership that ended when Imran (13) tried to work a rising delivery by Powell over gully position but tall Chris Gayle jumped and completed the catch easily.
Hafeez failed to last long and edged a delivery by Dwayne Smith into the safe hands of Chris Gayle at the second slip position at the total of 45 and after addition of two more to the Pakistan total, Smith got Shoaib Malik pinned before stumps leaving Pakistan struggling at 47/4.

—Agencies