Close West Indies 24 for 0 (Ganga 19*, Gayle 5*) and 366 trail Pakistan 493 and 214 for 6 dec (Inzamam 48, Rashid Latif 47*) by 317 runs
scorecard

West Indies, chasing 342 to win, were 24 without loss when play ended on the fourth day of the first Test. Daren Ganga and Chris Gayle survived a testing spell by Waqar Younis, and a few overs of new-ball spin from Saqlain Mushtaq and Danish Kaneria.

Waqar had begun the day with considerably more success than he had at the end of it, when he ripped through the West Indies lower order to take four of the last five wickets, and set up an intriguing contest. Overnight batsmen Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Ryan Hinds began the day playing with the same grit they had shown yesterday in averting the follow-on. Perhaps they hoped to make West Indies a competitive force in the Test - Waqar intended otherwise.

A vicious indipper from him grazed Chanderpaul's inside edge and careered onto his stumps, two deliveries after he had executed a stunning square drive for four off the same bowler (352 for 6). Hinds followed shortly after: trying an extravagant flick off his hips, he top-edged Waqar and Rashid Latif, gloves bristling in anticipation, held on safely (353 for 7). He had made 62.

That left Ridley Jacobs and the tail. Mervyn Dillon, on 5, was the first of the tailenders to go, tapping the ball down in front of him and setting off for a quick single, only to be sent back by Jacobs. Saqlain Mushtaq fielded off his own bowling and threw it back to Latif, who joyfully whipped the bails off (362 for 8).

Glimpses of the early Nineties shone through as Waqar picked up Cameron Cuffy's wicket at the other end with a magnificent yorker that uprooted the leg stump (363 for 9). Cuffy went quack quack.

Jacobs followed shortly afterwards, playing a miscued pull to a short ball from Waqar that surprised him with its pace. Danish Kaneria at fine leg held on safely.

The capitulation of the tail was only the latest instalment of a long-running tragic soap-opera. The last five wickets fell in the space of 14 runs today. These guys make Courtney Walsh look good.

Pakistan, clearly in the driving seat, then got stuck in first gear. Openers Naved Latif and Taufeeq Umar pottered around for a while, before Latif, whose awkward backlift makes his bat come down from the direction of gully, flashed impetuously and was caught behind for 20 off Mervyn Dillon in the 13th over (35 for 1). Pakistan should have sent in Abdur Razzaq to get a move on, but it was Younis Khan who emerged.

He and Taufeeq Umar added 19 runs in 63 deliveries, before Taufeeq was run out after a grotesque piece of running between the wickets which left both batsmen at the batsman's end, contemplating what excuse to give their captain for such sloppiness. Umar had made 23 (54 for 2).

Enter Inzamam-ul-Haq, showing an urgency which was clearly contagious, as Younis opened out, lofting Carl Hooper for a four over long-off in the 25th over. He hoicked Hooper for a six over midwicket in his next over, while Inzamam flat-batted Pedro Collins for an emphatic straight four in the 28th. He even - horror of horrors - took a couple of quick singles.

The partnership came to an end when Younis was caught behind off Cuffy for 32 (101 for 3). Yousuf Youhana (12) kept Inzamam company for a while, but was out playing a sloggacious shot in the 41st over. He stepped out Ganguly-like to Cameron Cuffy and skied the ball grandiosely over cover; Dillon, running back and keeping his eyes on the ball, took an excellent diving catch.

Inzamam was next, miscuing a pull off Dillon to be caught by Hooper at square leg (146 for 5). His 48 had come off just 56 deliveries, and in sharp contrast to his mates, there was not a hint of panic about him.

Razzaq, meanwhile, played and missed outside off against both Dillon and Cuffy, though when he did manage to connect, it was spectacular. A pulled six over deep midwicket to a short ball outside off in the 44th over, and a Tendulkaresque straight drive in the 54th, both off Cuffy, were breathtaking strokes.

Rashid Latif played a magnificent cameo at the end to go with his 150 in the first innings. He was unbeaten on 47 off just 42 balls, and while his four boundaries had an element of slog about them, the manner in which he stole singles and milked the bowling was exemplary. He has averaged over 60 in Tests since returning to international cricket. Moin Khan must be worried.

As must the West Indies. They need 342 to win, but realistically, a draw is the best they can manage. A team low on confidence, they're likely to find it tough going, on a fifth-day pitch of variable bounce, against the wiles of Saqlain and Kaneria. And, of course, the old-ball genius of Waqar Younis.

Teams
Pakistan 1 Taufeeq Umar, 2 Naved Latif, 3 Younis Khan, 4 Inzamam-ul Haq, 5 Yousuf Youhana, 6 Abdur Razzaq, 7 Rashid Latif (wk), 8 Waqar Younis (capt), 9 Shoaib Akhtar, 10 Saqlain Mushtaq, 11 Danish Kaneria.

West Indies 1 Daren Ganga, 2 Chris Gayle, 3 Sherwin Campbell, 4 Wavell Hinds, 5 Carl Hooper (capt), 6 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 7 Ryan Hinds, 8 Ridley Jacobs (wk), 9 Mervyn Dillon, 10 Cameron Cuffy, 11 Pedro Collins.

Amit Varma is assistant editor of Wisden.com India.

© Wisden CricInfo Ltd