ABU DHABI // Shivnarine Chanderpaul was the second West Indian to score what looked like being a match-winning century only to finish on the losing side as "hosts" Pakistan clinched the three-match one-day international series with a game to spare in front of a capacity Zayed Cricket Stadium crowd.
The exiled Pakistanis' second victory was nothing like as dramatic as the first which was snatched from the jaws of defeat by a magnificent display of hitting by their wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal. But it was celebrated just as wildly by the large UAE-based crowd.
These are hard times for Pakistani cricket with the Test team having been wrapped in cotton wool for the whole of 2008 and the one-day side having only limited rations in the face of political unrest in the country.
The disconsolate West Indians will feel they should have at least taken the destiny of the Fortune Cup to a decider after scoring nearly 300 in the first match and then restricting Pakistan to only 232 in the second.
While they got it wrong for just one over at the death in the first, they fell short by 24 runs in their second.
Each time it had looked plain sailing. Chris Gayle, the experienced Caribbean cavalier of an opener, had dominated the daytime part of the first encounter, smashing a thrilling century to set up a solid platform for victory until Akmal came and hammered a cameo 24 off only nine balls.
If the West Indies were guilty of buckling under pressure then, it was nothing compared to the way they pressed the self-destruct button in the middle of what had appeared to be a routine run chase on Friday night.
Knocked off course by the loss of both openers for ducks as Sohail Tanvir embarked on a hostile spell with the new ball, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Chanderpaul repaired the damage impressively to leave their team looking at just over a run a ball in the latter part of their 50-over allocation.
With the rock-solid Chanderpaul, the Test Cricketer of the Year, pushing and prodding and capitalising on two dropped chances to move towards what turned into an inevitable century, it only required minimal acceleration from those at the other end.
But only Sarwan stood his ground and he too departed one short of what would have been a richly- deserved half-century.
Having tasted success, the thirsty Pakistanis are aiming for the jugular to make a clean 3-0 sweep of the series at their second home.
As the West Indies look to salvage some pride, the coach John Dyson blamed lack of preparation for the two reverses.
Ahead of the tour, Dyson said he was worried that a six-week long camp for a one-match Stanford game had hampered their preparations.
"We had a long travel and jet lag but we had only two days to get ready and then into the game. There was no time to recover," he said.
wjohnson@thenational.ae
COMPANY PROFILE
Company: Eco Way
Started: December 2023
Founder: Ivan Kroshnyi
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Electric vehicles
Investors: Bootstrapped with undisclosed funding. Looking to raise funds from outside
ZIMBABWE V UAE, ODI SERIES
All matches at the Harare Sports Club:
1st ODI, Wednesday - Zimbabwe won by 7 wickets
2nd ODI, Friday, April 12
3rd ODI, Sunday, April 14
4th ODI, Tuesday, April 16
UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed
More from Aya Iskandarani
Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus
Developer: Sucker Punch Productions
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Console: PlayStation 2 to 5
Rating: 5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: DarDoc
Based: Abu Dhabi
Founders: Samer Masri, Keswin Suresh
Sector: HealthTech
Total funding: $800,000
Investors: Flat6Labs, angel investors + Incubated by Hub71, Abu Dhabi's Department of Health
Number of employees: 10
UAE athletes heading to Paris 2024
Equestrian
Abdullah Humaid Al Muhairi, Abdullah Al Marri, Omar Al Marzooqi, Salem Al Suwaidi, and Ali Al Karbi (four to be selected).
Judo
Men: Narmandakh Bayanmunkh (66kg), Nugzari Tatalashvili (81kg), Aram Grigorian (90kg), Dzhafar Kostoev (100kg), Magomedomar Magomedomarov (+100kg); women's Khorloodoi Bishrelt (52kg).
Cycling
Safia Al Sayegh (women's road race).
Swimming
Men: Yousef Rashid Al Matroushi (100m freestyle); women: Maha Abdullah Al Shehi (200m freestyle).
Athletics
Maryam Mohammed Al Farsi (women's 100 metres).
Chef Nobu's advice for eating sushi
“One mistake people always make is adding extra wasabi. There is no need for this, because it should already be there between the rice and the fish.
“When eating nigiri, you must dip the fish – not the rice – in soy sauce, otherwise the rice will collapse. Also, don’t use too much soy sauce or it will make you thirsty. For sushi rolls, dip a little of the rice-covered roll lightly in soy sauce and eat in one bite.
“Chopsticks are acceptable, but really, I recommend using your fingers for sushi. Do use chopsticks for sashimi, though.
“The ginger should be eaten separately as a palette cleanser and used to clear the mouth when switching between different pieces of fish.”
MATCH INFO
New Zealand 176-8 (20 ovs)
England 155 (19.5 ovs)
New Zealand win by 21 runs
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Klipit
Started: 2022
Founders: Venkat Reddy, Mohammed Al Bulooki, Bilal Merchant, Asif Ahmed, Ovais Merchant
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Digital receipts, finance, blockchain
Funding: $4 million
Investors: Privately/self-funded
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
The specs
Engine: 4-cylinder 2-litre
Transmission: 9-speed automatic
Power: 252 brake horsepower
Torque: 352Nm
Price: from Dh146,700
On sale: now
The specs: 2018 Nissan Patrol Nismo
Price: base / as tested: Dh382,000
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 428hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 560Nm @ 3,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.7L / 100km
Kill Bill Volume 1
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Stars: Uma Thurman, David Carradine and Michael Madsen
Rating: 4.5/5
Super 30
Produced: Sajid Nadiadwala and Phantom Productions
Directed: Vikas Bahl
Cast: Hrithik Roshan, Pankaj Tripathi, Aditya Srivastav, Mrinal Thakur
Rating: 3.5 /5
Company Profile
Name: HyveGeo
Started: 2023
Founders: Abdulaziz bin Redha, Dr Samsurin Welch, Eva Morales and Dr Harjit Singh
Based: Cambridge and Dubai
Number of employees: 8
Industry: Sustainability & Environment
Funding: $200,000 plus undisclosed grant
Investors: Venture capital and government