Justin Greaves became the first bowler in Test cricket history to bowl five consecutive wicket maidens.
The visitors were going strongly at 244-3 on the third day of the ongoing first Test, with Shan Masood having completed his century. But Shamar Joseph's dismissal of Salman Agha triggered a collapse.
Greaves took control of the proceedings then to pick up a wicket in each of his next five overs while not conceding a single run. Pakistan went from 244-3 to 282 all-out to concede a 29-run lead, when they were once well placed to post a lead themselves.
Greaves dismissed centurion Masood, Aamer Jamal, Ali Usman, Mohammad Rizwan and Mohammad Abbas to become the first bowler to deliver five consecutive wicket maidens in Test cricket. He had conceded 27 runs in his first six wicketless overs and finished the innings with figures of 5-27 after 11 overs. This was also his first five-wicket haul in Test cricket, having only bowled in 23 innings in his previous 16 Tests.
Greaves is seemingly making it a habit to bail the West Indies out of trouble. His double century against New Zealand in December 2025 in the Christchurch Test came when West Indies were 72-4 while chasing an improbable 531. His unbeaten 202 helped the team draw the match. Earlier this month, he smashed 180 against Sri Lanka to help West Indies post 499 and recover from 144-4.
West Indies vs Pakistan Test set up for thrilling finish
Pakistan didn’t let the collapse orchestrated by Greaves define the Test match. Led by Mohammad Abbas, they hit back, leaving the hosts reeling at 126-7 by the end of day's play. Abbas sent back Brandon King and Kavem Hodge in the same over before Khurram Shahzad joined in to dismiss Amir Jangoo.
Mohammad Ali and Aamer Jamal maintained the pressure, leaving the West Indies struggling at 93-7. The home team finished the day with an overall lead of 155 runs. Shamar Joseph came out swinging his bat at No.9, and is unbeaten on 22 off 13, which allowed the Caribbean side to stretch their lead beyond 150 runs.
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