The Pakistan cricket team’s hopes of extending their unbeaten run against the West Indies in ODI series were shattered as key batsmen, Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, failed to perform in a crucial series decider. Jayden Seales of the West Indies emerged as the star performer, taking a total of 10 wickets across the series, including a dominant performance in the final match.
In the decisive game, Seales’ impactful bowling dismantled Pakistan’s batting order, including the early dismissal of both opening batsmen, Sam Ayub and Abdullah Shafique, who both failed to score. This marked a rare instance in Pakistan’s ODI history, occurring after a gap of 15 years. The team’s captain, Mohammad Rizwan, was also unable to score, and the anticipated performance from Babar Azam, who had shown some promise by scoring 23 runs, was also cut short by Seales.
Seales’ exceptional performance included a career-best of 6 wickets for 18 runs in the final match. With this performance, he secured his place as the top wicket-taker of the series, with a total of 10 wickets in three matches.
The defeat meant Pakistan lost their chance to maintain an impressive record against the West Indies. The series loss saw Pakistan’s long standing streak of not losing an ODI series against the West Indies since 1991 come to an end. The failure of senior players, Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, to lead from the front was a major factor in the team’s disappointing performance.