World Cup 2015: West Indies thrash Pakistan to keep QF hopes alive

CHRISTCHURCH: There was a lot riding on this game and West Indies swung it decisively in their favour in the space of 36 balls to leave Pakistan on the edge. The 1992 champions now cannot afford any more false steps, for that could dash their hopes of qualifying for the knockout stage.
Full Coverage: ICC World Cup 2015
When Andre Russell came out to bat, 2.5 overs were left and West Indies were 259/5.The 13-ball 42 that followed from Russell's bat took the West Indians to 310, which had not looked possible for a major part of their innings.
It was a huge boost for the West Indies and put Pakistan under immense pressure. In the course of the first 19 balls of their innings, Pakistan lost four wickets to Jerome Taylor (3/15) and Jason Holder (1/23) to be reduced to one for four. There was no way they could fight back from there. The rest of it then, was a mere formality and Pakistan finally folded up for 160 to hand West Indies a 150-run victory. The Pakistan pacemen didn't make the most of the overcast conditions in the morning and even though the two dangerous openers Chris Gayle and Dwayne Smith were dismissed early , Darren Bravo (49 retired hurt) and Marlon Samuels (38) settled in well.
The 75 runs that they accumulated helped West Indies to consolidate at a stage when the game could have swung Pakistan's way. Samuels got out trying to accelerate but the West Indian middle-order of Bravo, Denesh Ramdin (51 off 43 balls) and Lendl Simmons (50 off 46 balls) kept up a decent rate.
Pakistan made the mistake of dropping legspinner Yasir Shah and it was difficult to stop the flow of runs with four specialist bowlers. In addition to that, there were four missed catches by Pakistani fielders which allowed West Indies the necessary breathing space.
Bravo retired hurt at a crucial time, tearing a left hamstring. His departure slowed down the innings but Darren Sammy (30 off 28 balls) lifted the tempo and then Russell made it all his show. After the Russell storm, it was important that Pakistan approached the run chase sensibly .
But Nasir Jamshed tried to pull the first ball he faced off Taylor ­ it climbed on him, forcing him to spoon a catch to midwicket. Younis Khan, struggling for form, was demoted to No. 3 and he got a first ball duck as well, nicking a well pitched up delivery that left him. Ahmed Shehzad and Haris Sohail followed suit and Pakistan were on the mat. Shoaib Maqsood (50) and Umar Akmal (59) tried to get the innings back on track, but by then it was too late.
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