Pakistan Delight in West Indies Mediocrity

Shahid Afridi and Younis Khan both made centuries as Pakistan took control of the second Test against the West Indies in Sharjah.

The two led Pakistan to 344 for three at the end of the opening day, after West Indies captain Carl Hooper won the toss and put them into bat.


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Afridi who replaced opener Naved Latif, made the most of four dropped catches to hammer 16 fours and three sixes in his 107 off 149 deliveries.

He shared in a second wicket stand of 190 with Younis Khan before being bowled by Cameron Cuffy half an hour before tea.

Khan was then partnered by Inzamam-ul Haq and Yousuf Youhana in reaching three figures from 170 deliveries.

He was 131 not out at stumps, alongside Youhana, unbeaten on 47.

Mervyn Dillon got the early breakthrough when Taufiq Umer popped a delivery that cut in sharply to Daren Ganga at short-leg to leave Pakistan 21 for one in the seventh over.

But Hooper was one of four fielders to let the advantage slip through their fingers by dropping Afridi at second slip off the bowling of Dillon when the batsman was on 29.

The Windies skipper also suffered a missed chance off his own bowling when Corey Collymore put down Afridi at mid-off after the opener had accumulated another 50 runs.

Afridi was given his first life after scoring just four by Ryan Hinds at third slip from a Pedro Collins delivery.

Dillon saw the first of two chances to go down off his bowling when Dinanath Ramnarine put down a difficult chance at gully when Afridi had added nine more to his score.

Ramnarine, who replaced the injured Sherwin Campbell, had a morning to forget when Afridi struck two sixes and a four from the last over of the session from the leg-spinner.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul added to the West Indies' mounting injury woes by departing from the field with a swollen thumb after trying to cut off the ball at point.

But the injury does not appear to be serious enough to prevent him from batting.

* Source: BBC Sports.