A BRILLIANT spell by Yasir Shah late on day four has given Pakistan control of the first Test against West Indies in Kingston.
Yasir (4-33) dominated before stumps yesterday as the Windies were reduced to 93-4 in their second innings, still trailing by 28 runs.
Opener Kieran Powell (49) had provided the resistance before he too fell at the hands of Yasir, who made the most of a turning and uneven Sabina Park wicket.
Devendra Bishoo and Vishaul Singh, who are both yet to score, made it to stumps and have plenty of work to do if the hosts are to salvage anything from the Test.
Pakistan had resumed at 201-4 and reached 407 – a first-innings lead of 121 – although captain Misbah-ul-Haq was left stranded on 99.
Mohammad Abbas (1) was trapped lbw to leave Misbah as the first Pakistan batsman – and sixth overall – to be left not out on 99.
Although Misbah can count himself unfortunate not to make three figures, he was dropped on 18 by Singh diving forward from short leg off Shannon Gabriel (3-92).
Gabriel did pick up a wicket in his next over, however, inducing an edge behind from Asad Shafiq (22), before Misbah and Sarfraz Ahmed built a partnership of 88.
Typically, Sarfraz played the more aggressive role with 54 from 70 balls before missing with a sweep to be cleaned up by Bishoo (1-106).
Misbah brought up his 5,000th Test run in the next over and with that milestone reached he set his sights on a century with the help of the tail.
Mohammad Amir (11) and Wahab Riaz (9) came and went and when Yasir departed for eight, Misbah was still 32 short of a hundred.
However, he used all of his considerable experience to farm the strike, depositing Bishoo for a couple of sixes in the meantime, but just when it looked as though he would reach three figures Abbas was trapped in front by Roston Chase (1-37).
West Indies had only just got the deficit below 100 when Kraigg Brathwaite (14) was bowled by Yasir, who would ensure an ideal finish to the day for Pakistan.
He got a delivery to turn a long way and saw Shimron Hetmyer (20) play on to leave the Windies at 72-2.
Shai Hope (6) was the next to go, a quicker ball from Yasir trapping him in front before he wasted a review.
Powell had looked the best of the batsmen but he went in the second-to-last over of the day, edging Yasir to Younis Khan at slip to leave the Windies fighting to save the Test. (Omisport)

WEST INDIES 1st innings 286
PAKISTAN 1st innings (o/n 201 for five)
Azhar Ali c wkp. Dowrich b Joseph 15
Ahmed Shehzad lbw b Holder 31
Babar Azam b Gabriel 72
Younis Khan c Brathwaite b Gabriel 58
Misbah-ul-Haq not out 99
Asad Shafiq c wkp. Dowrich b Gabriel 22
Sarfraz Ahmed b Bishoo 54
Mohammed Amir c wkp. Dowrich b Joseph 11
Wahab Riaz b Joseph 9
Yasir Shah run-out 8
Mohammed Abbas lbw b Chase 1
Extras: (b-4, lb-10, w-1, nb-12) 27
Total: (all out; 138.4 overs) 407
Fall of wickets: 1-23, 2-54, 3-185, 4-186, 5-236, 6-324, 7-341, 8-355, 9-373.
Bowling: Gabriel 29-6-92-3 (nb-6), Joseph 31-8-71-3 (nb-2), Holder 30-6-65-1 (nb-4), Bishoo 33-2-106-1 (w-1), Chase 8.4-1-37-1, Brathwaite 7-1-22-0.
WEST INDIES 2nd Innings
K. Brathwaite b Yasir Shah 14
K. Powell c Younis Khan b Yasir Shah 49
S. Hetmyer b Yasir Shah 20
S. Hope lbw b Yasir Shah 6
D. Bishoo not out 0
V. Singh not out 0
Extras: (lb-4) 4
Total: (4 wkts, 28 overs) 93
Fall of wickets: 1-22, 2-72, 3-84, 4-89/
Bowling: Mohammad Amir 9-2-11-0, Mohammad Abbas 6-0-21-0, Yasir Shah 9-0-33-4, Wahab Riaz 4-0-24-0.
Position: West Indies trail by 28 runs with six second innings wickets intact.