West Indies vs Pakistan, 1st Test, Pakistan tour of West Indies, 2026 - CommentaryWI vs PAK, 1st Test, Pakistan tour of West Indies, 2026 - Commentary

That brings the curtain down on a memorable first-ever Test at the Brian Lara Stadium. It had a bit of everything - rain interruptions on the opening day, Shan Masood's fighting hundred, Kavem Hodge and Shai Hope's resilience, Mohammad Abbas' superb five-for, Justin Greaves' historic spell of five successive wicket maidens and Jayden Seales' match-winning five-for. Fittingly, all 40 wickets in the match fell to pace, underlining just how much assistance the seamers extracted from the surface over four days. The action now shifts to the historic Queen's Park Oval in Port of Spain, Trinidad, where the second and final Test begins on August 2. The visitors will be desperate to snap their longest-ever overseas losing streak, while West Indies will look to wrap up the series. And perhaps there couldn't have been a more fitting tribute on Sir Garfield Sobers' birth anniversary, with captain Roston Chase dedicating this memorable victory to the great man. Until next time, it's goodbye from all of us.

Roston Chase, West Indies skipper: [On winning the first-ever Test at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy and dedicating it to Sir Garfield Sobers] It’s a great feeling, and we really want to dedicate this victory to the late, great Sir Garfield Sobers. Even before the game we spoke about wanting to come out here and make him proud. I hope he’s smiling in his grave right now. I also want to thank the Trinidad crowd for coming out and supporting us. It wasn’t the biggest crowd, but they gave us all the energy and support we needed to put in a really good performance. [On what pleased him most about the victory] I think it was the effort the bowlers put in after that second hour yesterday. We didn’t get any wickets in the first hour, but the patience and discipline they showed afterwards were magnificent. I think we picked up five or six wickets in that session, and that really set the game up for us. [On the team’s collective contributions] Yeah, I love it. I love the direction this team is heading in. We’re not relying on one or two players; everyone is chipping in at crucial moments. We sat together yesterday evening and hoped for at least another 50 runs this morning, and Shamar along with the bowlers really applied themselves. I think that gave us the confidence to go out there and finish the job today. [On earning an extra day’s rest before the second Test] It’s always a lovely feeling to get a day off, so yeah, I’m happy about that.

Babar Azam, Pakistan skipper: [On Pakistan’s defeat] Yes, the result wasn’t in our hands, but over the last two days we played some good cricket. Today, though, as a batting unit, we weren’t up to the mark. We kept losing wickets back-to-back and the batting failed. That’s something we’re working on. [On whether the surface, West Indies’ bowling or Pakistan’s batting was the bigger factor] The surface was good. We expected some movement with the new ball because that’s natural here, and we were prepared for that. But I think they bowled very well and used the conditions brilliantly. By the fourth day the ball was keeping a bit low and bouncing unevenly. We weren’t able to build partnerships, and that’s why we lost. [On Shan Masood’s injury and its impact] Yes, it affected us because unfortunately his finger isn’t in good condition. It’s fractured, so we definitely missed him. But at the same time, when you’re facing the new ball you have to survive the first 20 overs, build partnerships, and then as the ball gets older the pitch becomes easier to bat on. We couldn’t put together those partnerships. [On Pakistan’s run of away defeats] Yeah, we will sit together and discuss these things because while the result isn’t in our hands, we can certainly address our mistakes. We will do our best to change those things.

Justin Greaves: [On taking the first five-wicket haul at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy] Yeah, it’s right up there. Whatever it takes to get the team over the line, I always try to put my best foot forward. To come away with a Test win in the first Test played at this stadium is really, really special for us. [On what worked for him on this surface] Just being disciplined. One of the things we spoke about in the dressing room after the first innings was that we needed to start better, and we did that. After that, it was just about staying as disciplined as possible. [On the lengths he bowled and his assessment of the pitch] Yeah, look, watching Mohammad Abbas bowl really, really well against us in both innings, the lengths he bowled were a lot fuller. So I just tried to mimic that, and it pretty much worked out for us. [On balancing preparation as an all-rounder] Yeah, that’s pretty much up to the medical staff. But for me, once we get into practice sessions, it’s all about being very detailed in what I’m doing and then trying to execute those plans once the game starts.

Stats by Shashikant Singh

-- Pakistan have lost eight straight away Tests since their last overseas win in Sri Lanka in July 2023, which is their longest losing streak in overseas Tests.

-- This is only West Indies' second win in their last 11 Tests. The other win came against Sri Lanka in the previous series. They lost seven and two Tests were drawn.

-- 211 is the second-lowest 4th innings target Pakistan failed to chase against West Indies after an 188-run chase at Bridgetown in 2017.

-- All 40 wickets taken by pacers in a Test
ENG vs WI, The Oval, 1984
PAK vs ZIM, Rawalpindi, 1993
ENG vs SA, Leeds, 1998
SA vs IND, Johannesburg, 2018
ENG vs NZ, Lord’s, 2026
WI vs PAK, Tarouba, 2026*

-- This is also the first time all 20 wickets have been taken by West Indies pacers against Pakistan in a Test.

-- Lowest totals for PAK vs WI
77 runs, Lahore, 1986
81 runs, Bridgetown, 2017
104 runs, Lahore, 1959
106 runs, Bridgetown, 1958
120 runs, Tarouba, 2026*

-- Babar’s batting as Test captain
Innings: 37
Runs: 1808
Avg: 51.65
100s: 4
50s: 12
HS: 196

-- Jayden Seales vs PAK (Test)
Matches: 4
Wickets: 20
Avg: 17.25
SR: 33.0
5-fer: 2
BBI: 5/20

-- This is the fourth five-wicket haul by Jayden Seales in Tests and the first by a West Indies pacer in the 4th innings of a Test at home since Jason Holder’s (6/59) against Bangladesh at Kingston in 2018.

Pakistan fought back through Mohammad Abbas' outstanding five-wicket haul to keep the chase within touching distance, but the final innings belonged to the West Indies quicks once again. Jayden Seales ripped through the top order, Babar Azam stood tall with the only substantial resistance, and the rest never found enough support as the target proved a bridge too far. Fittingly, Seales claimed the last wicket as well. It is only West Indies' second win in their last 11 Tests, while Pakistan's eighth successive away Test defeat - their longest such streak, stretching back to their last overseas win in Sri Lanka in July 2023. Stick around for the post-match reactions...

15:46 local, 19:46 GMT, 01:16 IST: Just eight balls into the final session, Jayden Seales wraps things up with the final wicket to complete a deserved five-wicket haul as West Indies seal a commanding victory to take 1-0 lead. It is a win built on seizing the key moments across all four innings. Kavem Hodge's gritty 84 and Shai Hope's fluent 92 provided the backbone with the bat, while Pakistan's reply was shaped by Shan Masood's superb century before Shamar Joseph's dismissal of Salman Agha sparked a dramatic collapse. Justin Greaves then turned the game on its head with a stunning spell of five successive wicket maidens, claiming his maiden Test five-for and handing West Indies a tiny yet crucial first-innings lead.

Jayden Seales to Abbas, THATS OUT!! Lbw!!

Up goes the finger of umpire Richard Kettleborough. Mohammad Abbas reviews it straightaway. Given out lbw. No bat - missed the bat by a fair margin. Clipping leg stump on ball tracking - umpire's call and that is enough for the hosts...

And we have a review first ball after tea. Is that the end of Test match? The review was taken with 5 seconds to go on the DRS timer. No bat involved. Ball tracking shows it to be missing leg stump. Not out.

Welcome back! Warrican to resume. One slip in place...

PAK batters vs Pace in 2nd session (by lengths)
Full (< 6m): 3/36 (51 balls), RR: 4.23
Good (6-8m): 2/7 (56 balls), RR: 0.75
Short (8+m): 1/33 (56 balls), RR: 3.53