TRINIDAD, Aug 13: Shai Hope helped deliver some long overdue good news for the West Indies with a century to inspire the Caribbean cricketers to a series-clinching, 202-run win over Pakistan.
It was the first bilateral ODI series won by West Indies against Pakistan since 1991 and ended a run of home series defeats across the test and Twenty20 formats to Australia and Pakistan.
Hope stroked an unbeaten 120 before pace bowler Jayden Seales destroyed Pakistan’s chase with six wickets in the third and final one-day cricket international.
The West Indies captain said he was extremely proud of his team.
Hope added there’d been a lot of stress on negatives in the game but now there was “positives to shout about” for West Indies cricket.
The big win came in the wake of a two-day emergency summit for Caribbean cricket. Hope attended part of the summit, along with greats including Brian Lara and Clive Lloyd, to help create strategies to lift West Indies back toward the top of the international game.
Pakistan was dismissed for 92 in 29.2 overs Tuesday after West Indies posted 294-6 at Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba, Trinidad and Tobago.
Hope hit five sixes and 10 fours in his 94-ball knock, sharing an unbroken seventh-wicket stand with Justin Greaves of 110 runs in around eight overs.Greaves was 43 not out in only 24 deliveries, including two sixes and four fours. (AP)