Jayden Seales strikes early to put Pakistan in trouble chasing 211

West Indies pacer Jayden Seales struck twice before lunch to leave Pakistan reeling in pursuit of 211 on day four of the first Test at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy on Tuesday.

Imam-ul-Haq made five while Azan Awais could only manage three, leaving Pakistan at 21-2 inside five overs. Salman Ali Agha could not open his account and was pinned lbw by Seales, reducing Pakistan to a dire 25-3. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan then negotiated the remainder of the session to steady the innings.

Earlier, Mohammad Abbas produced a superb bowling performance, taking a five-wicket haul to bowl out West Indies for 181 in their second innings after they had resumed the day on 126-7. The home side’s tail frustrated Pakistan early on, with Shamar Joseph and Kemar Roach adding 28 more runs in four overs during a 61-run stand that took West Indies’ lead past the 180-run mark. Joseph top-scored with a useful 38 off 27 balls, striking four sixes and a four, before Mohammad Ali eventually dismissed him with a slower delivery to break the partnership.

The West Indies tail continued to frustrate Pakistan as Roach added another 15 runs with Jomeel Warrican to take the lead closer to 200. Mohammad Abbas then snared Roach, who made 18, to claim his fourth wicket before bowling Warrican for 14 to complete his seventh five-wicket haul in Test cricket. For Pakistan, Abbas returned figures of 5 for 22 in 15.5 overs, while Mohammad Ali and Khurram Shahzad claimed two wickets apiece.

With Pakistan’s chase off to a disastrous start, the pressure now falls on Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan to rebuild the innings and guide their team towards the 211-run target on a challenging pitch.