Brathwaite and Dowrich guide West Indies to victory
SHARJAH: Kraigg Brathwaite and Shane Dowrich struck unbeaten half-centuries to guide West Indies to a first Test victory in 14 matches as the Caribbean side beat Pakistan by five wickets on the final morning of the third Test in Sharjah on Thursday.
Opener Brathwaite, who carried his bat for an unbeaten 142 in the first innings, and Dowrich each scored 60 in adding 87 for the unbroken sixth wicket after West Indies had been reduced to 67 for five chasing 153 for victory.
The 23-year-old Brathwaite, who was on the field for every minute of the test, was named man of the match.
“It was a privilege (to bat with Dowrich),” Brathwaite told the broadcaster. “The communication was good, we talked with each other, keep rotating the strike and we brought it home.
“This is the best batting match of my career... Obviously I’ve had a good start (to my career), you know the key is to maintain it,” added Brathwaite, who has five hundreds and 12 fifties from 34 tests. “I just want to continue working hard and score a lot of runs.”
The victory ended a 13-match streak without a victory (10 losses and three draws) for West Indies, stretching back to May last year when they beat England at home. Pakistan won the three-match series 2-1 keeping intact their unbeaten record in their adopted home of the United Arab Emirates since the 2009 attacks on the Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore forced them to play abroad.
“We took a lot of the momentum we had at the beginning of the game and ran with it,” said Jason Holder, who helped set up his first win as West Indies captain with a five-wicket haul in the second innings.
Pakistan leg-spinner Yasir Shah claimed figures of 3-40 in the second innings and was adjudged the man of the series for his haul of 21 wickets while paceman Wahab Riaz, who had taken a five-wicket haul in the first, added two more to his tally.
Pakistan captain Misbahul-Haq felt Pakistan were well below par but also credited West Indies for the win.
BRIEF SCORES
West Indies 337 & 154-5 (Brathwaite 60no, Shane Dowrich 60no; Yasir Shah 3-40) bt Pakistan 281 & 208 by 5 wickets.