By NAN Sports Editor
News Americas, MIAMI, FL, Fri. Aug. 20, 2021: After winning the first test match by a single wicket, the West Indies cricket team will clash with Pakistan against today. The question on every fan’s mind is can the Windies win again and clench the two-test series and bragging rights?
Vice-captain Jermaine Blackwood says he is confident his side can capture the two-Test series. The big but is if the batting group remains disciplined in the second Test starting today in Jamaica.
The home side won a nail-biter in the first Test, chasing a modest 168 to win by a single wicket deep in the final session of last Sunday’s penultimate day at Sabina Park.
Blackwood, his captain Kraigg Brathwaite and Jason Holder were the only Windies batsmen with half-centuries in the contest, but the Jamaican said the entire batting group were working extremely hard behind the scenes.
The performance came against the backdrop of the recent South Africa tour when West Indies were rolled over 2-0, in one of their most shocking batting displays in recent times when no batsman managed a series aggregate above triple figures.
But Blackwood pointed to the 2-0 series win over Bangladesh and the nil-all draw against Sri Lanka earlier in the year, as signs the West Indies batsmen were understanding their responsibilities.
Today’s test match gets underway at 11 am EST and will run through Aug. 24th.
TEAMS: West Indies (probable): 1 Kraigg Brathwaite (capt), 2 Kieron Powell/Shai Hope, 3 Nkrumah Bonner, 4 Jermaine Blackwood, 5 Roston Chase, 6 Kyle Mayers, 7 Jason Holder, 8 Joshua Da Silva (wk), 9 Alzarri Joseph/Chemar Holder, 10 Kemar Roach, 11 Jayden Seales.
Pakistan (probable): 1 Abid Ali, 2 Imran Butt, 3 Azhar Ali, 4 Babar Azam (capt), 5 Fawad Alam, 6 Mohammad Rizwan (wk), 7 Faheem Ashraf, 8 Hasan Ali, 9 Yasir Shah/Nauman Ali, 10 Mohammad Abbas, 11 Shaheen Afridi.