Pakistan ended a three-year overseas drought in emphatic fashion at Queen’s Park Oval, beating West Indies by eight wickets inside four days to draw the two-Test series 1-1. The victory, sealed in Port of Spain on Wednesday, was Pakistan’s first Test win away from home since July 2023 and snapped a painful run of eight consecutive defeats on foreign soil.
Chasing a modest target of 75 after bowling the hosts out for 117 in their second innings, the tourists needed fewer than 24 overs to get the job done. Abdullah Shafique and captain Babar Azam, both unbeaten on 24, completed the win in the sixth over after lunch, sparking celebrations in a dressing room that had waited three years for this moment.
Match Scorecard at a Glance
The two innings that decided the second Test, in numbers:
- West Indies 1st innings: 344 all out — Jason Greaves 73; Sajid Khan 4-85
- West Indies 2nd innings: 117 all out — Sajid Khan 4-32, Ali Usman 4-39
- Pakistan 1st innings: 387 all out — Abdullah Shafique 160 not out, Babar Azam 88; Jomel Warrican 6-112
- Pakistan 2nd innings: 77-2 — Shafique 24 not out, Babar 24 not out
- Result: Pakistan won by eight wickets; series drawn 1-1
- Venue: Queen’s Park Oval, Port of Spain, Trinidad — completed on day four of five
How Day Four Unfolded in Port of Spain
West Indies resumed on 103-6 overnight, a lead of just 60 after a late collapse on day three had squandered the platform built by their bowlers. Pakistan, who had posted 387 in reply to the home side’s 344, sensed the contest was there for the taking — and they needed barely half an hour on the fourth morning to confirm it.
The hosts were bowled out for 117, losing their three remaining wickets inside the opening session with batter Brandon King absent hurt. Left-arm spinner Ali Usman, playing only his second Test, was the chief architect, finishing with 4-39 and collecting two of his wickets on the final morning. Sajid Khan, who had taken 4-85 in the first innings, added 4-32 to complete a match haul of eight wickets.
Pakistan’s chase briefly wobbled. Imam-ul-Haq was caught by Jason Greaves off the bowling of Jayden Seales for nine, and Azan Awais was bowled by Shamar Joseph for 18, leaving the tourists 57-2 at lunch. But with only 75 needed, the nerves never really had a chance to bite: Shafique and Babar knocked off the remaining runs in the sixth over after the interval, sealing the win with eight wickets in hand.
Shafique’s Unbeaten 160 Anchors Pakistan’s Reply
The foundation of Pakistan’s victory was laid two days earlier, when Shafique produced one of the finest innings of his career. Facing a West Indies attack buoyed by a hostile home crowd, the opener carried his bat for an unbeaten 160, guiding Pakistan to 387 in response to the hosts’ first-innings 344.
Shafique’s knock was an object lesson in Test-match discipline — patient early, increasingly fluent as the innings progressed and unshakeable while wickets tumbled around him. Babar Azam provided the ideal foil with 88, the captain’s first substantial score of the series, and the pair’s composure ensured Pakistan’s eventual lead of 43 was always likely to prove decisive on a wearing surface.
The opener’s form is a significant boost for Pakistan ahead of a demanding tour of England. Runs at the top of the order have been hard to come by for the tourists in recent overseas campaigns, and an innings of this authority — followed by a calm unbeaten 24 in the run-chase — suggests Shafique is hitting his stride at exactly the right moment.
Warrican’s Six-For and Greaves’ Grit Keep the Windies Alive
For West Indies, the standout performer with the ball was left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican, whose 6-112 in Pakistan’s first innings kept the hosts in the contest. Without his control and relentless accuracy — he bowled long spells as Pakistan looked to build a match-winning lead — the deficit could have been far greater.
In the first innings, Jason Greaves’ 73 was the backbone of West Indies’ 344, anchoring the innings after early wickets and giving the bowlers something to defend. Greaves remained influential to the end, taking the catch that dismissed Imam-ul-Haq on the final morning, but the home side’s batting frailties against spin ultimately proved too much to overcome.
Shafique’s pedigree was never in doubt — he announced himself on the international stage with a double hundred in Galle in 2022 and has since established himself as one of Pakistan’s most dependable openers — but consistency away from home had been the missing ingredient. Innings like this one, played out under pressure on a pitch offering the spinners real assistance, are exactly what Pakistan will need to replicate in England.
Spinners Rule on a Turning Pitch
The Queen’s Park Oval surface offered sharp turn and variable bounce from early in the match, and the contest quickly became a battle of the slow bowlers. Across the four days, spinners claimed 27 of the 36 wickets to fall — a statistic that told the story of the pitch, and of two attacks that knew exactly how to exploit it.
Pakistan’s decision to field two frontline spinners in Sajid Khan and Ali Usman paid handsome dividends. Sajid’s eight-wicket match haul was his best return in recent memory, while Usman’s 4-39 on a surface offering him assistance underlined the depth of Pakistan’s spin resources. For West Indies, Warrican’s six-for in the first innings was the highlight, even if the final scoreline showed there is still work to do.
How the Series Was Won
The series had begun in Tarouba, where West Indies produced a performance full of heart to win the first Test and take a 1-0 lead — a victory dedicated to the memory of the late Sir Garfield Sobers, the greatest all-rounder the game has seen. Jayden Seales was the hero of that win, his five-wicket haul slicing through Pakistan’s batting and giving the hosts a famous victory.
Pakistan’s response in Port of Spain was emphatic. The eight-wicket win not only squared the series 1-1 but also demonstrated the character of a side that had been written off after consecutive away defeats. For West Indies, a drawn series against a higher-ranked opponent represents genuine progress, with Seales’ emergence as a genuine pace spearhead the most encouraging sign of all.
Ending a Three-Year Away Drought
The numbers behind Pakistan’s win are stark. Since beating Sri Lanka in Colombo in July 2023, they had lost eight consecutive Tests away from home — a three-match series in Australia and two-match campaigns in both South Africa and Bangladesh. The win in Port of Spain is therefore about far more than a drawn series; it is proof that this Pakistan side can win on the road.
The last time Pakistan celebrated an overseas victory, they were completing a 2-0 series sweep of Sri Lanka in Colombo in July 2023. Since then, tours of Australia, South Africa and Bangladesh all ended without a win, and questions about the team’s ability to compete away from home had grown louder with every defeat. Wednesday’s result does not answer all of those questions — England’s seaming pitches will test Pakistan’s batters in an entirely different way — but it proves the habit of losing on the road can be broken.
Captain Babar Azam, who led from the front with the bat, will hope the victory provides the platform for a sustained improvement in overseas results. The immediate challenge is a big one: a three-match Test series in England, where Pakistan’s record has been mixed in recent years and where the conditions could hardly be more different from the slow, turning tracks of the Caribbean.
What It Means and What’s Next
For Pakistan, the series draw — secured with a performance of genuine authority — offers momentum, belief and valuable points in the World Test Championship standings. For West Indies, the fight shown across the two Tests, particularly through Seales and Greaves, suggests a young squad moving in the right direction, even if the results are not all there yet.
Attention now turns to England, where Pakistan begin a three-match series at Headingley on Wednesday 19 August. England will be starting a new era of their own: Joe Root returns as captain following Ben Stokes’ retirement, Stephen Fleming takes over as head coach, and Ollie Pope and Dan Lawrence have been recalled for the opening two Tests. It promises to be a compelling contest between two teams at pivotal moments in their development.
For the wider picture, the series was a reminder of how competitive Test cricket has become across the Caribbean. Queen’s Park Oval, one of the oldest and most atmospheric grounds in the region, produced a contest that swung one way and then the other — a first-innings lead for the hosts, a defiant reply from Pakistan, and a final morning that belonged entirely to the tourists. It is the kind of Test that both teams, and the fans who watched it, will remember for some time.
Key Takeaways
- Pakistan won by eight wickets inside four days at Queen’s Park Oval to draw the series 1-1
- Abdullah Shafique was the star: an unbeaten 160 in the first innings followed by 24 not out in the chase
- Sajid Khan took eight wickets in the match (4-85 and 4-32), supported by Ali Usman’s 4-39
- Jomel Warrican’s 6-112 for West Indies was the standout bowling performance of the series
- The win ended Pakistan’s run of eight straight away Test defeats, dating back to Colombo in July 2023
- Pakistan next face England in a three-Test series starting at Headingley on 19 August
