WI VS PAK 1ST ODI

1 run.

A bit full and around off, Carty comes forward and defends it to cover.

Oh, wow! There is some extra bounce! Back of a length and in that channel outside off, there is some seam movement along with extra bounce. Carty presses back and looks to play it but the ball moves away and beats the outside edge of the bat. Mohammad Rizwan, behind the stumps, thinks there was some edge as he appeals but the umpire turns it down.

Begins with a hard-length delivery, around middle, Evin Lewis shuffles across, gets inside the line and tucks it towards square leg with soft hands to steal a single to get off the mark.

Naseem Shah to operate from the other end.

Nagging length and outside off, angling away, Keacy Carty leaves it.

Keacy Carty walks in at number 3, replacing Brandon King.

OUT! CAUGHT! And out on the next ball is Brandon King. A soft dismissal. Shaheen bowls it fuller and outside off, tries to entice the batter and keeps it pretty wide of the off stump. King just leans half-forward and extends his arms to reach out. He plays it too away from his body and ends up chipping it aerially off the upper half of the bat to cover, where Babar Azam takes it around his chest height easily. The first one is down for the West Indies in the first over, and Shaheen Afridi is pumped up, and so are the players of Pakistan.

OUT! CAUGHT! And out on the next ball is Brandon King. A soft dismissal. Shaheen bowls it fuller and outside off, tries to entice the batter and keeps it pretty wide of the off stump. King just leans half-forward and extends his arms to reach out. He plays it too away from his body and ends up chipping it aerially off the upper half of the bat to cover, where Babar Azam takes it around his chest height easily. The first one is down for the West Indies in the first over, and Shaheen Afridi is pumped up, and so are the players of Pakistan.

FOUR! A freebie and gets punished! Afridi offers a full toss, on the pads, Brandon King isn't going to miss out that as he shifts his weight on the front foot and clips it over mid-wicket for a cracking boundary.

BEATEN! A bit fuller, tries to make the batter play, and around off, angling away, Brandon King comes forward to defend it but gets beaten on the outside edge.

There is some swing on this occasion! Similar, hitting the deck length and a touch outside off, moves away from the batter, Brandon King, at first, looks to defend but then decides to leave it to the keeper in the end.

Starts off with a hard-length delivery, around off, tries to bring it back in from there, Brandon King stands tall and drops it down into the deck back to the bowler.

Done and dusted with the pre-match proceedings! The umpires are out in the middle and the players of Pakistan can be seen in a huddle around the boundary ropes before heading out on the field. It will be the pairing of Brandon King and Evin Lewis to open the innings for West Indies. Shaheen Afridi has the new ball in hand and is raring to go. Let's play...

We are just a few minutes away from the start of the game. A lot of young mascots are out there and they are joined by a few officials as well. Also, Deighton Butler, one of the on-field umpires, receives a memento from Match Referee, Richie Richardson, as he makes his debut as an umpire in an ODI game. Onto the anthems next and first up, it will be the national anthem of Trinidad followed by the national anthem of Pakistan and then finally, the West Indian anthem.

PITCH REPORT - Samuel Badree is pitchside along with Stacy-Ann King. Badree says this is the newest venue to host men’s ODIs, with the first match played here in 2022 and now the second taking place today. From the northern end, the straight hit measures 74 meters, while the square boundaries are 64 and 62 meters. He reminds that the 2024 T20 World Cup semi-final was also played here. Badree notes that the pitch has favoured bowlers in the past. Stacy mentions that there is a covering of green grass, and the surface feels quite hard, which will make life challenging for the batters. She adds that spinners are likely to play a key role, and with possible rain interruptions on the cards, conditions could get even trickier. With vital points on offer for World Cup qualification, they expect a fascinating contest.

Shai Hope, the West Indies captain, says he would have bowled first as well, sharing the same thought process as Rizwan. Adds that the team still has its own brand of cricket they want to play, and the players have been showcasing their skill and talent well. Hope stresses the importance of remaining consistent in this format and admits that qualifying for the World Cup 2027 remains a top priority. Says they often speak about the importance of securing automatic qualification and remain focused on that goal.

Mohammad Rizwan, the skipper of Pakistan, says that they will BOWL first. Reckons that there is moisture in the deck and they want to use that. Adds that their goal is to play a modern way of cricket and informs that they aren't quite sure of the pitch conditions and have plenty of all-rounders in the team.

Meanwhile, in Bulawayo for the second test, New Zealand have continued their dominance on Day 2, amassing a massive 601/3 in their first innings, establishing a lead of 476 runs. This was built upon the back of some superlative batting performances, three centuries so far, with Henry Nicholls and Rachin Ravindra both scoring impressive centuries to go along with a great start from Devon Conway. The Kiwis' batting prowess was a stark contrast to Zimbabwe's lacklustre performance on Day 1, where they were bowled out for a paltry 125. The Zimbabwean batsmen struggled against a disciplined New Zealand bowling attack, with Matt Henry and Zakary Foulkes being the chief destroyers. Facing a potential whitewash, Zimbabwe will have to produce an extraordinary performance to avoid a heavy defeat.