GEORGETOWN, Guyana – Sunil Narine returned to his best form with a magical spell of off-spin bowling as West Indies rebounded to beat Pakistan in the second One-Day International on Tuesday. Narine took four wickets for 26 runs off his 10 overs to floor the visitors and give the home side a crucial victory by 37 runs at the Guyana National Stadium.
The 25-year-old went wicketless off three overs when the West Indies lost on Sunday, but he proved unstoppable on Tuesday as Pakistan were bowled out for 195 off 47.5 overs in reply to West Indies’ 232-8 off their 50 overs.
The West Indies innings was built around a patient half-century from left-hander Darren Bravo while his older brother and captain Dwayne Bravo made a vital 43 not out at the end of the innings.
Speaking after the match Narine said he was determined to get it right after Sunday’s defeat.
"I was a good day for me. Before we came to the ground we knew we had to get a win to stay in this series and give our supporters something to cheer about. We got what we wanted…we wanted to bowl first and then set a target for Pakistan to chase," Narine said.
"I just had to give it my all. I bowled a little quicker because, on this pitch, some balls were staying low and some were bouncing. It was not an easy pitch for the batsmen to come after you and play their shot. Today is was similar to what we saw on Sunday."
Narine has been excellent for West Indies since making his international debut back in December 2011. He was voted ICC Emerging Player-of-the-Year last year and is presently Number 1 in the ICC ODI and T20 bowling rankings.
"We are now level and back in the series and we will look to move to St Lucia and win there as well. The pitch there will be a bit different to what we have here in Guyana, but I believe I have the ability to bowl well there and get some more wickets," Narine added after accepting his Man of the Match award.
"This was a good victory for us. We batted well on a tough pitch and then all the bowler put the ball in the right areas and got the rewards."
The two teams will travel to St Lucia on Wednesday for the next three matches at the Beausejour Cricket Ground.