Pakistan vs West Indies, 2nd Test Day 3: West Indies defeated Pakistan by 120 runs© AFP

Kevin Sinclair led a West Indian spin trio to give the tourists a sniff of a series-levelling win in the second Test Sunday with Pakistan on the ropes at 76-4 after day two in Multan. The gutsy West Indies scored 244 in their second innings to set the hosts a daunting 254-run target on a spinning Multan Stadium pitch. At stumps, Saud Shakeel was unbeaten on 13 and nightwatchman Kashif Ali on one. The West Indies need only six more wickets to draw the series 1-1.

Pakistan need a demanding 178 runs for victory. They won the first Test by 127 runs, also in Multan.

Sinclair (2-41) opened the floodgates by trapping Pakistan skipper Shan Masood leg before for two and then had the prized wicket of Babar Azam caught for a dour 31.

Azam had added 43 with Kamran Ghulam, who was dropped twice, on two and six, but the lapses did not prove costly to the West Indies.

Gudakesh Motie had Muhammad Hurraira for two and Jomel Warrican dismissed Ghulam for 19.

The day saw 14 wickets fall, after 20 on day one.

In the morning West Indian skipper and opener Kraigg Brathwaite led the fight for the visitors with a gritty 52.

The last four wickets added an invaluable 99 runs before the tourists were dismissed for 244 in their second innings at tea.

Left-arm spinner Noman Ali finished with 4-80 — 10 wickets in the match — while partner Sajid Khan took 4-76, six in the match.

The West Indies were 129-5 at lunch when Noman dismissed Alick Athanaze for six, before the tourists put up a fight that could prove decisive.

Tevin Imlach scored 35 and Sinclair 28 to boost their team’s lead during a stubborn stand of 51 for the seventh wicket, before Sajid accounted for Sinclair and Motie for 18.

Pacer Kashif had Imlach but the last pair of Warrican and Kemar Roach took the total past 240, before Sajid had Warrican caught for 18.

Earlier, Brathwaite led the way with two sixes and four boundaries in his 31st Test half-century.

Noman broke a solid 50-run opening stand by dismissing Mikyle Louis for seven after the tourists started their second innings in the morning.

Brathwaite overturned two leg-before decisions against him before he was stumped by Mohammad Rizwan off Noman.

Debutant Amir Jangoo also batted well for his 30 with three boundaries, before Sajid had him caught in the slips by Salman Agha.

Kavem Hodge was stumped by Rizwan off Noman for 15 as the West Indies slumped from 92-1 to 129-5.

Pakistan wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan was involved in a hilarious moment with West Indies spinner Kevin Sinclair on Day 2 of the 1st Test in Multan on Saturday. The incident happened after Sinclair walked to bat out with West Indies reeling at 6/42 in the second session. As Sinclair was walked out in the middle, Rizwan hilariously mocked him by labelling the pitch in Multan as a “graveyard”. Batters on Day 2 and Day 3 struggled to play against the spinners.

Pakistan lost six wickets in the second session, while West Indies were bowled out inside a session and a half for a paltry total of 137. For the unversed, a total of 19 wicket fell on Day 2.

As a result, Rizwan was seen playing mindgames with Sinclair, and his chat with the Guyana-born cricketer has gone viral on social media.

“Ya brother, come to the graveyard. You enjoying the bowling, brother?” Rizwan asked Sinclair, who nodded his head in response.

Ya brother, come to the graveyard” – Mohammad Rizwan to Sinclair #PAKvWI pic.twitter.com/C64C847Bx6

— cricket gallery (@cricketgallery0) January 18, 2025

Sajid Khan and Abrar Ahmed wreaked havoc with the ball taking nine wickets combined for 77 runs to help Pakistan defend the 251-run target as the hosts took a 1-0 lead over the West Indies here at the Multan Cricket Stadium on Sunday.

Similar to their first innings collapse of 137/10 in 25.2 overs, the West Indies were bowled out for 123 in 36.3 overs in the second innings, falling 128 runs short of the target. Only No. 5 batter Alick Athanaze managed a substantial score as he collected 55 runs off 68 balls, hitting seven fours.

Sajid, who also completed 50 Test wickets during the second innings, returned with the figures of 5-50 to take his match tally of wickets to nine, while Abrar chipped in with 4-27 in 11.3 overs. It was Sajid’s fourth Test five-for.

West Indies gave away their first four wickets to Sajid as they were reduced to 37-4 in 12.5 overs. Athanaze stuck around for a 41-run sixth-wicket stand with Tevin Imlach and a resisting 28-run stand with Kevin Sinclair for the seventh wicket.

After Imlach’s departure at the score of 95, the West Indies could only add 28 runs for the last four wickets. Noman Ali, who dismissed five batters in the first innings, picked up one wicket in the second outing.

Earlier in the day, Pakistan continued from their overnight score of 109-3 and were bundled out for 157 in 46.4 overs. Jomel Warrican finished with figures of 7-32 in 18 overs and a match tally of 10 wickets for the West Indies.

(With IANS Inputs)