Player of the Match Sajid Khan credits batters for crucial runs against Windies on spin-friendly Multan deck

Pakistan completely outplayed the West Indies on Day 3 of the first Test of the ongoing series, clinching a 127-run victory at the Multan Cricket Stadium in Multan. In a low-scoring thriller, it were the spinners who reigned supreme, accounting for 34 out of total 40 wickets that fell in the match.

For Pakistan, the star with the ball was the 31-year-old off-spinner Sajid Khan, who took nine wickets in the Test; figures of 4 for 65 in the first innings, and 5 for 50 in the second. Sajid was rightly adjudged the Player of the Match for his stellar show with the red cherry in hand.

During the post-match presentation, the spinner was asked to shed light on his experience and performance in the game, and the cricketer gave a very humble statement, acknowledging the knocks of wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan, Saud Shakeel and skipper Shan Masood on spin-friendly tracks. The offie also mentioned the discussions with spin bowling coach Abdur Rehman on his approach in the first and second innings along with the conditions.

“The pitch was great. The setup has been great. The special man of the match is Rizwan and Shakeel, and Shan in the second innings. The team is playing together and it is great. [On bowling in turning conditions] The wicket had a lot of turn and bounce. The spin bowling coach spoke to me and in the second innings, I bowled a little slower and did not leak too many runs. [On Noman] he discusses a lot with me as he is very experienced. We did not want to give runs in the second innings, and that was great,” he said.

Also Read: Pakistan go way ahead on Day 2 as Sajid Khan, Noman Ali spin web around West Indies

Rizwan, Shakeel and Masood make crucial runs

This was a tough match for the batters, but that did not stop some of the Pakistan batters to score vital runs for their team. It was Mohammad Rizwan and Saud Shakeel who saved the Pakistan innings in the first innings when they were 46-4. Shakeel scored a brilliant 84 off 157 deliveries, while Rizwan chipped in with an equally important 71 off 133 deliveries.

Skipper Masood also played a crucial knock in the second innings, scoring 52 off 70 deliveries despite running out of partners due to the incredible spell from Jomel Warrican and made sure Pakistan gave a steep target of 251 runs in the end.