da bet sport： Pakistan, already without the injured Shaoib Ahktar, rested WasimAkram and Waqar Younis so that they could introduce the latestexpress fast bowler to come off the assembly line in their thirdsuccessive victory over the West Indies that ended the
Tony Cozier21-Sep-1999Pakistan, already without the injured Shaoib Ahktar, rested WasimAkram and Waqar Younis so that they could introduce the latestexpress fast bowler to come off the assembly line in their thirdsuccessive victory over the West Indies that ended the TorontoCricket Festival yesterday.Shabbir Ahmed, a tall, slim, gangling, 23-year-old, raisedeyebrows with his speed and hostility and set tongues waggingwith an unconventional action that will inevitably come underscrutiny of those on the International Cricket Council (ICC)committee who sit in judgement of such things.He ended a long, loping approach with an ungainly delivery thatwas repeatedly shown by television replays to involve a crookedelbow, as much as a cocked wrist.Umpire David Orchard at square-leg passed it as legal, but thedoubts of the West Indian voices in the crowd of 4 000 whobellowed for him to watch that action were no unfounded.Those who follow Barbados club cricket would immediately noticesimilarities with Gordon Maxwell, once of the Barbados under-19team, more lately of BET.Overcome by nerves, Shabbir sprayed three leg-side wides in hisopening over, that flew past the keeper to the boundary and hadeight more closer to the stumps besides in his ten overs.But he ripped out a different stump three times to despatchAdrian Griffith, off, in his first, frenetic over and RicardoPowell, leg, and Chris Gayle, middle, with successive balls inhis second spell as five West Indies wickets fell for six runsoff 47 balls.While Shabbir shattered them with pace, Saqlain Mushtaq foxedthem with deception, and Arshad Khan with accurate off-breaks ona dry pitch that yielded to spin.With Corey Collymore, Reon King and Nehemiah Perry still absentwith injuries and Hendy Bryan dropped, Courtney Walsh and MervDillon were the only two specialist bowlers in a side lopsidedwith nine batsmen.A sizeable total was required to make a match of it and it seemedpossible as Sherwin Campbell and the left-handed Wavell Hinds,both again batting with the confidence built by earlier runs,added 75 for the second wicket.Saqlain, Arshad and Shabbir ruined the illusion in quick time.Campbell was lbw to Saqlain’s flighted drifter for 32 in the 18thover, Hinds was taunted and teased before edging a drive to slipoff Saqlain in the 22nd, and Shivnarine Chanderpaul was drawn toArshad’s sharp off-break and stumped in the 23rd.Create mayhemMoin Khan, leading Pakistan in Akram’s absence, then recalledShabbir to create his mayhem in his first over on return, yorkingPowell and beating Gayle for speed.It left captain Brian Lara, Jimmy Adams and Ridley Jacobs to seewhat they could salvage from the ruins of 92 for six.Mushtaq Ahmed, the crafty little leg-spinner who hardly gets agame since Saqlain arrived on the scene, saw to it that theydidn’t.Lara lashed him over midwicket for six but both he and Adamstopedged sweeps to short fine-leg and Jacobs got the worse of adodgy caught-behind decision off Abdul Razzack.With such limited bowling, the West Indies’ all-out 161 wasobviously a losing total.Walsh lifted spirits among his countrymen on the field and in thestands by bowling Wajahutallah Wasti first ball and he and thelively Dillon made the Pakistanis battle for their runs.Adams claimed the 17-year-old Hasan Raza to a catch at sillypoint in his second over but whatever fight there might have beenwas drained from the West Indies by the sight of Walsh leavingthe ground after seven overs with a side strain, and hisreplacement, Bryan, and Powell dropping Inzamam-ul-Haq’sspiralling topedged pulls at long-leg.Soon, Chanderpaul was trundling his leg-breaks and gettingAbdul Razzack caught in the deep off a long-hop and Campbellwas having his first bowl for the West Indies to complete theformalities and a depressing tournament for the West Indies.For Pakistan, the smiling, reinstated Akram again proclaimed histeam the strongest in the world.On the evidence, it was difficult to dispute it.