West Indies went into the game with only one specialist spinner, Jomel Warrican. The next best option for them would have been captain Roston Chase himself, though an injured finger meant he would not be wise to play second fiddle to Warrican. And while he bowled seven overs in the first innings, the injury eventually halted him from continuing.
West Indies’ lack of spin options
Kavem Hodge, who has bowled in only 13 Test innings out of the 34 matches he has played, had to fill in as the second spin option.
This obviously did not work for the hosts as Pakistan bagged the win on the back of their spinners. Ali Usman, who was playing his maiden Test series, alongside a more experienced Sajid Khan, was able to exploit the surface, which had plenty to offer for spinners to work with.
Chase, who had hoped his team could capitalise on the win in the first innings, expressed his disappointment with going light on his spin options.
“It is obviously disappointing [to lose this match],” the West Indies captain said after the match. “We wanted to win this series 2-0 or even try to get this match ended in a draw. I think we could have probably gone in with an extra spinner. I underestimated my injury [on the index finger] and thought I would be able to bowl a bit more than I did. There was a bit too much pain when I bowled, because of which I could not go any further.”
West Indies batting in second innings
West Indies’ batting in the second innings was the final nail in the coffin for them. Having come in to bat in the last session on day three, they lost six wickets by the close of play. With Brandon King also out injured, the task of getting rid of the tail-enders on day four was fairly easier for Pakistan.
West Indies also had a similar sort of collapse in the second innings of the opening Test. However, the match scenario at that point made sure it did not hurt them. When asked if West Indies batters are struggling to put runs up on the board in second innings, Chase said:
“I wouldn’t say our second innings batting is a concern. Obviously, you need to score big in the first innings and then as the pitch deteriorates the scores come down. I think we could have done better in terms of negotiating the spin and putting up a total with which we could have given our bowlers a chance.”
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