West Indies vs. Pakistan: Winners and Losers from 4th ODI

Pakistan edged past the West Indies by six wickets in the 4th One-Day International and the teams showed us they can play exciting cricket in the Caribbean.

The first three matches marked uneasy batting, lack of aggression and a dead-bat approach by the otherwise-attacking batsmen.

But the hosts, despite Chris Gayle’s demotion and Kieron Pollard’s omission, racked up an impressive total which Pakistan eased past with an over to spare despite rain interruptions and a Duckworth-Lewis target that did not favour them.

Loser: Chris Gayle

After scores of one, one and eight in the opening three One-Day Internationals of the series, Chris Gayle opted to demote himself down the order and away from the awkward bounce of Mohammad Irfan and late movement by Junaid Khan.

The move was vindicated when it came to the number of runs Gayle scored (30 off 46) but the left-hander did not have the best of starts and should have been walking back for nought had Mohammad Hafeez not dropped the former captain in the slips.

There were signs of resurrection but it all ended too soon for him.

His ominous hitting—often on display in the IPL and other Twenty20s - is surely a spark missing from the series so far.

Winner: Misbahul Haq

Pakistan’s repeated failure at the top of the order means that captain Misbahul Haq is in the middle with not much runs on the board.

Tired of criticism hurled his way for his slow approach to batting, Misbah recently confirmed that he will play his natural game in order to win over the hearts and score quickly.

However, with Pakistan in trouble more often than not, Misbah’s approach has been cautious and defensive once again. However, with eight half-centuries in his last 15 ODIs, Misbah has become Pakistan’s saviour with the bat—and in the field—while also topping the charts for the highest run-scorer in ODIs this year.

Loser: DRS

The debate rages on. The review system has been put in places to improve decision-making—regardless of whether the players ask for it or not.

Johnson Charles edged Mohammad Irfan early on, the bowler, the wicket-keeper and the fielders went up, the umpire said not out and Charles stayed put.

Misbahul Haq did not take a review, perhaps wanting to save it for the later overs and perhaps not entirely convinced of the edge.

The stump mic and replays brought out the truth. The question, especially in the wake of the Stuart Broad incident, brings the question to the fore: why can’t the third umpire intervene when a howler needs to be eliminated – the very reason behind DRS’ existence.

Winner: Marlon Samuels

The year 2013 had been very unkind to Samuels – not being able to score runs or not being able to score them quickly.

His three innings prior to yesterday’s ton were scratchy, as he prodded unconvincingly, slashed ineffectively and walked back an unsatisfied person, not being able to live up to his reputation that reached its peak at last year's World Twenty20 final.

Yesterday was a different story altogether and not just because he scored an unbeaten 106—his first ODI century in 12 months—but the way he achieved the landmark.

His timing was sweet, his pulling was powerful and he found the gaps right from the start - an act missing earlier in the series.

The celebration, the bowing and the euphoria at the end proved just that.

Loser: Wahab Riaz

Wahab Riaz gave away over five runs an over for the 11th time in his last 15 ODIs.

He was guilty of leaking 14 runs in the final over of the third ODI which helped the hosts sneak a tie in and the waywardness was on show once again.

Riaz did manage a wicket but his 42 off six overs highlighted his career economy-rate issues (5.55 in 36 ODIs) but his ability to use the long-handle—albeit scarcely—is what keeps him in the side.

Time to give Abdul Rehman a game, perhaps?

Winner: Mohammad Hafeez

Mohammad Hafeez, Pakistan’s Twenty20 captain, has been in the supporters’ bad books of late—for not scoring enough and being "overly" involved in the field.

Nicknamed the ‘professor’, Hafeez’s ascent to captaincy in the shortest format followed his rise as an all-rounder since his comeback in 2010. However, bar a century against Ireland ahead of the Champions Trophy, Hafeez’s performance as a batsman was found wanting, with calls increasing for him to be pushed down the order.

Yesterday’s 59—comprising crisp timing and improved placement—has silenced the critics temporarily and bought Hafeez some time but he knows that he needs to do more with the bat in order to justify his number-three slot in ODIs.