Close West Indies 325 for 5 (Hinds 55*, Chanderpaul 45*) trail Pakistan 493 all out (Youhana 146, Latif 150) by 168 runs
scorecard

Shivnarine Chanderpaul and the debutant Ryan Hinds exhibited stainless-steel nerves as they toughed their way past the follow-on target on the third day of the first Test against Pakistan at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. At the close, West Indies were 325 for 5, in reply to Pakistan's huge total of 493.

The final session wasn't the prettiest you'll ever see, but it was certainly one of the bravest, as a West Indian team missing Brian Lara and boasting the worst recent overseas record in the game gave as good as they got. Hinds opened up with a couple of fours as the day drew to a close but Chanderpaul was circumspection personified to the end. And how his team needed it.

Waqar Younis rotated his attack after tea but Hinds and Chanderpaul blunted each thrust with some sterling defensive work. Not that it was all quiet. Both Waqar and Shoaib Akhtar were treated contemptuously at times, while Saqlain Mushtaq and Danish Kaneria saw loose deliveries disappearing to the rope in the twinkling of an eye.

Before tea, we had seen the best and worst of West Indian cricket on display. A rollicking stand between Wavell Hinds and his captain Carl Hooper – and later a more sedate one between Hooper and Shivnarine Chanderpaul – was ended by the rush of blood that has been the bane of their cricket in recent seasons. But there was no denying that the post-lunch entertainment was easy on the eye.

Hinds had galloped to 59 with consummate ease when he reared his head like a startled stallion and charged down the track to Kaneria. No prizes for guessing that he belted nothing but desert air, leaving Rashid Latif with a regulation stumping (180 for 4). It was a poor way to end a defiant innings that had brought back echoes of cavalier Caribbean batsmen of days gone by. Hinds had got to his fifty in some style, walloping Kaneria for a four and six in successive balls. His cover drives were laced with tremendous power and there was a cheeky edge to the sweeps he attempted off Saqlain Mushtaq.

Hooper also got to a half-century, but no further. The captain's innings of 56 was all about controlled power and sublime timing. His shots straight down the ground and through the covers were executed with the customary Hooper panache, but he fell just as the sugar was being spooned into the tea cups. Abdur Razzaq – who has done it to Sachin Tendulkar on several occasions – got one to nip back and catch him in front of the wicket (231 for 5). Chanderpaul had already dropped anchor at the other end, knowing that he would have to stay afloat if the West Indies weren't to sink like a stone after tea.

The morning session saw a fascinating tussle as West Indies battled to stave off Pakistan's bowlers. They went into lunch at 130 for 3, still a massive 363 runs in the red. The loss of two quick wickets, including the crucial one of Chris Gayle, just before lunch was a big blow – Saqlain having shown why he will be a potent threat as this match wears on.

The West Indies made a slow but steady start, with Gayle once more the aggressor. He cruised to his fifty in emphatic fashion, stroking Razzaq for three boundaries in an over. A fluent cover drive was followed by a smashing shot past point and a gorgeous back-foot push through cover that brought up his half-century.

He carried on the good work with a splendid cover drive off Akhtar before Pakistan broke through on the stroke of the drinks break. Daren Ganga had no answer to a delivery from Saqlain that darted back in and caught him plumb on the crease (88 for 1). He had stuck to the crease in limpet-like fashion for his 20 and given Gayle valuable support.

As is so often the case, Gayle joined his opening partner in the pavilion shortly after. Saqlain tossed one up and he played all over it to see his middle stump uprooted. The end of a fine innings and the first alarm bells for the West Indies (96 for 2).

By this time, Saqlain was buzzing and with Kaneria also coming into the attack, West Indies faced an examination by spin as lunch drew near. Hinds was determined not to take a backward step though and he played his shots with the same freedom that Gayle had earlier. He started by guiding Akhtar to the third man boundary. Then it was Saqlain's turn to be stroked through the covers and swept fine to the square-leg fence. Kaneria was worked cleverly down to fine-leg and then smashed to the midwicket boundary.

Kaneria had his revenge when he sent Sherwin Campbell packing on the brink of the lunch. Campbell didn't read the googly that pitched outside off, and padded up, giving the umpire little option but to raise the finger (126 for 3). Hinds and Hooper saw it through to lunch but West Indian appetites were spoilt a little by the events just before the break. Perhaps, the satisfaction of a job well done in the morning saw Pakistan tuck in a little too heartily, because it was all West Indies after that, Hinds' mad rush notwithstanding.

Teams
Pakistan 1 Taufeeq Umar, 2 Naved Latif, 3 Younis Khan, 4 Inzamam-ul Haq, 5 Yousuf Youhana, 6 Abdur Razzaq, 7 Rashid Latif (wk), 8 Waqar Younis (capt), 9 Shoaib Akhtar, 10 Saqlain Mushtaq, 11 Danish Kaneria.

West Indies 1 Daren Ganga, 2 Chris Gayle, 3 Sherwin Campbell, 4 Wavell Hinds, 5 Carl Hooper (capt), 6 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 7 Ryan Hinds, 8 Ridley Jacobs (wk), 9 Mervyn Dillon, 10 Cameron Cuffy, 11 Pedro Collins.

Dileep Premachandran is assistant editor, Wisden.com, India

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