This is a match report of the Pakistan v West Indies Third Test Match at Karachi in December 1980–81. Batting recession and rain, which delayed the start until halfway through the second scheduled day, blunted any prospect of a positive result in the third Test at Karachi.
The steady fall of wickets from the start hinted that a conclusion might be achieved, but the experience of Sadiq Muhammad and Majid Khan on the fourth evening, when Pakistan batted a second time, and the skillful batting of Wasim Raja on the final day ensured that the West Indies would not take the match with a late surge.
Javed Miandad, Pakistan’s 23-year-old captain, chose to bat on a drying pitch and was soon regretting his decision as Colin Croft and the other West Indian pace bowlers carved through the batting. Pakistan was in deep trouble when four wickets fell for only 14 runs, with Zaheer Abbas also back in the pavilion after being hit on the forehead by a short ball from Colin Croft. Overnight, the home team was 68 for 6.
Javed Miandad (60 off 169 balls), helped chiefly by Wasim Bari (23 off 59 balls), reclaiming his place in the Test side, hauled Pakistan up to 128 (six men failed to score a new Test record). Therefore, on the third day, local excitement rose as the West Indies lost five wickets for 44 to Imran Khan and Iqbal Qasim. The combined might of Vivian Richards, Desmond Haynes, Faoud Bacchus, Alvin Kallicharran, and Clive Lloyd was disposed of cheaply as Pakistan developed visions of a series-leveling victory.
Then came the rescue act, performed on this occasion by David Murray (42 off 182 balls), who is proving so reliable as ‘keeper-batsman, and Larry Gomes (61 off 202 balls), whose Test career has been stop-start. They added 99 for the sixth wicket, pushing the West Indies into a slight lead before spin reclaimed control. Pakistan, after all, conceded a deficit in the first inning of 41 runs. Imran Khan (4 for 66) and Iqbal Qasim (4 for 48) took early wickets to inroad the West Indies, while Muhammad Nazir took 2 for 21.
The fourth evening was crucial, and after Joel Garner trapped Shafiq Ahmed for 17 off 37 balls, Sadiq Muhammad (36) and Majid Khan (18) batted out time, leaving Pakistan 29 ahead with nine wickets in hand at the start of the final day. It did not sting too much when Clive Lloyd dropped Majid Khan in the opening over. Because soon both he and Sadiq Muhammad were out, and when Zaheer Abbas (1) and Javed Miandad (5) went cheaply, Pakistan was in danger at 85 for 5.
Left-hander Wasim Raja (77* off 142 balls, 3 fours) battled on, helped by vitally long if numerically trivial innings by the lower-order batsmen. Imran Khan scored 12. The play ended 25 minutes from the scheduled close, and the series remained alive. Wasim Raja was declared player of the match. From Pakistan, Ijaz Faqih made his test debut. Match umpires: Javed Akhtar and Shakoor Rana.
