Tony Becca, Contributing Editor
Pakistan spinner Danesh Kaneria (left) and teammates celebrate the dismissal of West Indies star batsman Brian Lara (second right) on yesterday's penultimate day of the second Test match in the Digicel Series at Sabina Park. Kaneria took four wickets to put his team on the verge of a series-levelling win. - PHOTOS BY JUNIOR DOWIE/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
THE SECOND and final Test of the Digicel Series between the West Indies and Pakistan enters its fifth and final day at Sabina Park today with the visitors, thanks to right-arm legspinner Danish Kaneria, in total command and heading for victory.
At the end of yesterday's fourth day - a day interrupted by bad light, rain, bad light, and then bad light again, the scoreboard read, Pakistan 374 and 309, West Indies 404 and 114 for six.
Although a cricket match is never over until it is over, the West Indies chance of winning this one is only as good as that of a snowball in hell.
With the home team needing another 166 to win with only four wickets in hand, with all their specialist batsmen in the pavilion, with Courtney Browne and Daren Powell at the crease and only Tino Best, Reon King and Corey Collymore to come, the odds, with all of today to go, are definitely on Pakistan.
One down after losing the first Test at Kensington Oval, they are favoured to win the match, share the series and enjoy their best performance in the Caribbean.
ONLY A DRAW
Set a victory target of 280 with 62 overs and a day in which to get it, the West Indies, needing only a draw to win the series, were on the run - not so much because of pacer Shabbir Ahmed who removed Christopher Gayle caught by Yasir Hameed in the slips for 15 at 27; not because of pacer Abdul Razzaq who removed Wavell Hinds, caught by Younis Khan at second slip for 19 at 100 for six; but because of Kaneria.
In a wonderful spell of tantalising spin bowling, Kaneria - four wickets for 36 runs off 14 overs - tore out the heart of the West Indies batting by picking off Ramnaresh Sarwan, Brian Lara and captain Shivnarine Chanderpaul without conceding a run as the home team, after looking good at 48 for one, dropped to 56 for four before Devon Smith, 49, and Hinds stopped the slide for a while with a fifth-wicket partnership of 38.
After bamboozling Sarwan, after losing an appeal for leg before wicket when he beat the batsman with his first delivery, and after dropping a return catch in the same over with the batsman on eight, the 24-year-old Kaneria returned after the first interruption and sent him packing the West Indies number three going back in an attempt to play the ball behind square-leg, cutting his own throat by stepping on his stumps.
That was 48 for two and to the amazement of the small crowd it was 48 for three when the left-handed Lara, attempting like Sarwan to play the ball behind square-leg, offered wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal a catch off the face of the bat.
ESCAPE
Eight runs later, after Chanderpaul had escaped when he stroked the legspinner to short leg and Asim Kamal failed to hold a sharp chance, immediately after the second interruption and after two cracking square-cuts by Smith off Shabbir, it was 56 for four when the left-handed Chanderpaul opened up, attempted to pull, and was leg before wicket for zero.
The man from Karachi made it 94 for five when the left-handed Smith went back defensively, opened the face, and was caught by Akmal, and just before the end, Razzaq took care of Hinds with a beauty.
If Pakistan win the match - as they should, they will have to say "Shukria", not only to Kaneria, but also to their captain and top batsman Inzamam ul-Haq.
And if by some miracle the West Indies surprise and win it, they will have to say thanks, not only to whoever rescue them, but also to fast bowler Best.
With Pakistan resuming on 223 for four and in search of a total they believed, at the time, would be too much for the West Indies, Inzamam, 64 overnight, added another 53 to reach 117 before, with their last six wickets falling for 86 runs in 24.5 overs, he ran out of partners.
LAST MAN
In the second over after lunch, Collymore removed last man Kaneria caught and bowled to finish with four for 56 off 16.5 overs a return which, added to his first innings seven for 78 off 27.3 overs, handed him match figures of 11 for 134 off 44.2 overs.
In ticking off his 22nd century in his 101st Test match, Inzamam stroked 14 boundaries, the majority of them delicate, wristy strokes against the West Indies pacers.
With Shahid Afridi, 16 not out overnight, banging the ball around the ground, including one glorious six over mid-wicket off fast bowler Powell in the morning's second over, with Inzamam driving Powell twice to the long-on boundary, with Pakistan looking dangerous at 267 for four and the West Indies needing a breakthrough, Best stepped in.
In the twinkling of an eye it was 279 for seven with Best, who finished with a career-best four for 46 off 13 overs, grabbing three wickets in three overs - one in each over.
Pakistan, 1st Innnings, 374
West Indies, 1st Innings, 404
Pakistan, 2nd Innings
(overnight 223-4)
Shoaib Malik c Browne b Collymore 64
Yasir Hameed c Smith b Collymore 26
Younis Khan c and b Gayle 43
Asim Kamal lbw b Collymore 0
Inzamam-ul-Haq not out 117
Shahid Afridi c Smith b Best 43
Abdul Razzaq b Best 2
Kamran Akmal c Browne b Best 1
Rana Naved b King 0
Shabbir Ahmed c Browne b Best 0
Danish Kaneria c and b Collymore 0
Extras: (2lb, 3w, 8nb) 13
TOTAL: (all out) 309
Overs: 77.5.
Fall of wickets: 1-66, 2-119, 3-119, 4-294, 5-267, 6-273, 7-279, 8-280, 9-295, 10-309.
Bowling: Daren Powell 22-0-100-0 (1nb, 1w), Tino Best 13-1-46-4 (1nb, 1w), Reon King 16-1-70-1 (6nb, 1w), Corey Collymore 16.5-2-56-4, Chris Gayle 10-2-35-1.
West Indies, 2nd Innings
(target 280)
C Gayle c Y Hameed b S Ahmed 15
D Smith c K Akmal b D Kaneria 49
R Sarwan hit wicket b D Kaneria 8
B Lara c K Akmal b D Kaneria 0
S Chanderpaul lbw b D Kaneria 0
W Hinds c Y Khan b A Razzaq 19
Courtney Browne not out 8
Daren Powell not out 4
Extras: (1lb, 10nb) 11
TOTAL: (for six wickets) 114
Overs: 40.
Wicket fell at: 1-27, 2-48, 3-48, 4-56, 5-94, 6-100.
To bat: Tino Best, Reon King, Corey Collymore.
Bowling: Shabbir Ahmed 12-1-40-1 (1nb), Abdul Razzaq 14-5-37-1 (9nb), Danish Kaneria 14-5-36-4.
Umpires: David Shepherd (England), Darrell Hair (Australia).
Third/TV umpire: Billy Doctrove (Dominica).
ICC match referee: Ranjan Madugalle (Sri Lanka).
