The stats so far had predicted a tight game with a close finish and Pakistan possibly taking it. That didn't happen. Here's why. (Click to read Squadstats pre-game preview)
Of late, Pakistan have shown a particular liking to bungle up and throw it all away whilst chasing . Squadstats had shown that if they ended up batting second, they had a tendency to score at over 5 an over, but get bowled out in around 46 overs. They had to save their wickets in order to win. At 39-3 and then 116-6, that clearly wasn't happening.
West Indies performed to potential - they were estimated to score around 231 for 7. They scored 230 and with 11 extras, they got to 241. Pakistan, however, scored well below their regular team average.It had been pointed out that both teams score a high percentage of their runs in boundaries (46 -47%), and choking them would be the best way to contain them. That's the key reason for the Calypso contest - Smith, Bravo and Colleymore laid siege to the Pakistani scoring to such an extent that at one point, they couldnt score more than 13 runs in nine overs. Frustration and the resultant collapse with Inzi, Yousuf and Akmal going in quick succession was almost inevitable.
Sarwan's crisp off side stroke play was as much a delight for the aesthetically inclined purist to the number crunching statistician. He was the man Pakistan had to be contain, and Sarwan it was who first took the game from them once he was dropped in the slips. Both Pakistan and West Indies had very few players scoring big ones, but the difference was Pakistan's chief scorer was a man expected to score anyway - Inzamam, whereas West Indies had both, a man expected to score scoring well (Sarwan) and two men expected to do ok doing well above the team's average (Smith and Samuels).
In fact, Smith outdid the team's average in both, the bat and the ball. The West Indian average was 34.14 at 4.78 rpo. At lease three bowlers - Powell, Smith and Bravo - outdid that comfortably. That probably was the most appropriate way to sum up the game - a case of a few good men playing above their potential.
Pakistan are now in a dicey spot where they have to depend on Zimbabwe to ensure an easy entry into the Super Eight. If Zimbabwe defeat the West Indies, they are likely to be in with 2 wins in three games, leaving Pakistan's Super Eight qulifation a bit of a scrap. Not something Chacha Cricket will be jumping around in joy about at all.