Shamarh Brooks, after years of toil in the domestic circuit, made his Test debut earlier this year against India. The 31-year-old batsman, however, had a tough time, scoring just 63 runs in four innings, including a 50 in the second innings of the second Test in Kingston.
Brooks, though, made amends here with a gritty knock of 111 — his first Test century — against Afghanistan on Thursday, taking the West Indies closer to victory.
Resolute innings
Afghanistan’s spinners spun a web, but Brooks stood firm, hitting 15 boundaries and a six in his resolute innings. He ensured that West Indies reached 277 in the first innings, a lead of 90 runs.
In the second outing, Afghanistan suffered another middle-order collapse and ended the day on 109 for seven, for a slender lead of 19. Javed Ahmadi tried his best to steady the ship, scoring 62, but none of the other top batsmen stepped up.
Taking advantage of the spin-friendly track, Rahkeem Cornwall and Roston Chase scalped three wickets.
Middle-order mess up
With a three-day finish on the cards, the Afghanistan camp would be disappointed with its approach in the second innings. At a time when it was necessary for the middle-order batsmen to hold fort, they failed to show intent and surrendered meekly to the spinners.
On the eve of the game, Afghanistan coach Lance Klusener had spoken about setting “smaller targets” in a bid to get accustomed to the new format. But over the last couple of days, his side failed to execute the plans.
After being bundled out for 187 in the first innings, Amir Hamza Hotak grabbed his maiden five-wicket haul, but his efforts meant little as the visiting side managed to gain the upper hand.
