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| November 30, 2006 | Thursday | Ziqa'ad 8, 1427 |
Hafeez on song as Pakistan take control on dreary day
KARACHI, Nov 29: A laborious half-century by Mohammad Hafeez put Pakistan on course for setting a challenging target for the West Indies on the third day of the third and final Test at the National Stadium here on Wednesday.
Hafeez’s unbeaten 57, which have thus far consumed just under four hours, typified the mind-numbing cricket on a day when sun constantly played hide and seek with the clouds. It seemed quite appropriate when the two umpires Daryl Harper and Mark Benson decided to stop the game at 4.48pm amid fading light.
Pakistan, having obtained a marginal lead of 44 runs on the first innings, ended the day at 130 for two with the record-chasing Mohammad Yousuf partnering Hafeez on one.
Nonetheless, Pakistan must feel satisfied for being in a position to press home the advantage when they resume their second innings on the fourth day with an overall lead of 174.
Once West Indies had been bowled out for 260, three minutes prior to the lunch interval, it was imperative that Pakistan got a good start to build on the advantage.
Both Hafeez, who has hit six boundaries in his 134-ball knock, and Imran Farhat looked extremely cautious as they began the second innings. Playing and missing on several occasions on an inconsistent pitch that has become the focal point of discussion, the two openers plodded away to add 43 in 103 minutes. It was at this stage that the West Indies made the initial breakthrough when Daren Powell had Imran (20 off 71 balls, three fours) caught behind off a fine delivery that slanted across the left-hander and induced an outside edge to the wicketkeeper.
Younis Khan strode out confidently to the middle on his 29th birthday and quickly got into stride with successive boundaries off Powell. Looking more assured than he was in the first innings when he was inexplicably run out for a streaky 20, Younis played within himself for the better part of his nearly two-hour stay.
The Pakistan vice-captain, however, had one lucky break on 19 when Dwayne Bravo was surprised by a scorching caught and bowled chance.
That prompted Younis to go into a shell as he didn’t score a single run off the next 22 balls. The Peshawar-born batsman, however, gradually took charge to find the gaps and also inspired Hafeez to score aggressively during the 79-run partnership which came off 159 balls.
Younis, who had an average series by his lofty standards (181 runs at 36.20), appeared set for something big when he pulled Chris Gayle over midwicket for a six.
But the part-time off-spinner got his revenge when Younis played back and across to a faster one and found himself plumb in front of the stumps. Umpire Benson promptly sent him marching towards the pavilion 17 balls before the premature close of play.
New man Yousuf nearly had his dream of overtaking Viv Richards’s calendar year record shattered when fast bowler Jerome Taylor struck him on the pads twice in one over.
Yousuf must have heaved a sigh of relief when the game was called off soon after while Taylor was about to start his next over. But Pakistan’s star batsman would, undoubtedly, be the centre of attention on Thursday in his endeavour to score the remaining 46 runs required for the world mark while Lara and his men will give their utmost to ensure that record remains with the West Indies.
Earlier in the day, West Indies suffered a huge setback in the morning’s fifth over when Daren Ganga, their last recognized batsman, provided Abdul Razzaq with his 98th Test wicket as he went for a loose drive through the offside.
Ganga, who looked in control of the situation on Tuesday, could add just four to his overnight score of 77.
Powell and Jerome Taylor then fell for one run apiece soon after the second new ball was taken, the latter acrobatically held by a diving Kamran Akmal.
At that stage it looked as if Pakistan would manage a lead in excess of 80 but their hopes were somewhat dashed when Ramdin (50 off 95 balls) and last man Corey Collymore (8 not out) frustrated them by putting on 44 priceless runs in just under an hour. The West Indies innings finally ended when the wicketkeeper-batsman was run out at the non-striker as he called Collymore for a second run.
However Ramdin, who scored his fourth half-century in 15 Tests with the help of seven boundaries, had his share of luck when Kamran Akmal failed to collect a sharp chance off Danish Kaneria.
The ever-improving Umar Gul extended his haul in the current series to 14 with the wicket of Powell and ended up with figure of four for 79 while Kaneria finished with three for 62 in 35 overs.
The West Indies cannot allow the match to drift along aimlessly as it did on Wednesday when only 199 runs were scored for the loss of six wickets. Chasing a score of 300-plus on this pitch will be an uphill task for the visitors despite the presence of Brian Charles Lara in its ranks.
Scoreboard
PAKISTAN (1st Innings) 304 (Mohammad Yousuf 102).
WEST INDIES (1st Innings, overnight 191-6):
C.H. Gayle c Razzaq b Umar Gul 40
D. Ganga c Kamran b Razzaq 81
B.C. Lara b Umar Gul 0
R.R. Sarwan b Umar Gul 0
S. Chanderpaul c Imran b Kaneria 36
R.S. Morton c Imran b Kaneria 21
D.J. Bravo c Kamran b Kaneria 8
D. Ramdin run out 50
D.B. Powell b Umar Gul 1
J.E. Taylor c Kamran b Shahid 1
C.D. Collymore not out 8
EXTRAS (B-5, LB-2, NB-7) 14
TOTAL (all out, 96 overs) 260
FALL OF WKTS: 1-51, 2-51, 3-51, 4-114, 5-153, 6-190, 7-204, 8-213, 9-216.
BOWLING: Umar Gul 24-5-79-4 (3nb); Shahid Nazir 17-3-58-1 (2nb); Danish Kaneria 35-12-62-3; Abdul Razzaq 16-5-44-1 (2nb); Mohammad Hafeez 4-1-10-0.
PAKISTAN (2nd Innings):
Mohammad Hafeez not out 57
Imran Farhat c Ramdin b Powell 20
Younis Khan lbw b Gayle 38
Mohammad Yousuf not out 1
EXTRAS (B-4, LB-10) 14
TOTAL (for two wkts, 52 overs) 130
FALL OF WKTS: 1-43, 2-122.
BOWLING (to-date): Taylor 11-4-23-0; Collymore 7-5-5-0; Powell 12-3-35-1; Bravo 10-1-24-0; Gayle 10-2-23-1; Sarwan 2-0-6-0.
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