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West Indies aim to bounce back

West Indies are doubtless still reeling from their last-over defeat to Pakistan on Wednesday, but their captain, Chris Gayle, is adamant that his side will bounce back

Cricinfo staff
13-Nov-2008

Chris Gayle's thumping century came in a losing cause in the first ODI © AFP
 
West Indies are doubtless still reeling from their last-over defeat to Pakistan on Wednesday, but their captain, Chris Gayle, is adamant that his side will bounce back.
"We are positive despite being hurt," Gayle said, "because we have two games left and need to come up with a better plan for a victory."
West Indies were seemingly heading for a comfortable win after Gayle's aggressive 113 boosted their total to a challenging 294 for 9. But Jerome Taylor conceded 17 off the final over of Pakistan's chase, with Kamran Akmal smashing him for two sixes to steal a breathless win for.
"What happened was that I bowled one over and Taylor was supposed to come and replace me, but I bowled a good 47th over so I continued and he was left to bowl the last over. It was unfortunate for him that he conceded 17 runs," Gayle said. "Our bowlers bowled well, especially the debutant [Lionel] Baker did well under pressure."
While West Indies' attack had problems at the death, Pakistan's bowlers struggled to contain an explosive start from Gayle. "It's tough to bowl when Gayle is on," Aaqib Javed, Pakistan's assistant coach, said. "But I think our batsmen were focused and did not give until the end and we now look for a 3-0 win."
Pakistan are still waiting on the fitness of Shoaib Akhtar who missed the first match due to a calf muscle injury. "He bowled seven overs in two spells on Thursday but it's an internal injury and only Akhtar himself knows how he is feeling," Aaqib said. They will wait until the morning of the second ODI, on Friday, before deciding on Shoaib's match-readiness.