Cricket: Inzamam steadies Pakistan

West Indies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .438

Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .326

FINALLY confirming the potential he first revealed in last year's World Cup, Inzamam-ul-Haq saved Pakistan familiar embarrassment on the third day of the third and final Test here yesterday with a maiden Test century full of class and character.

The tall, 23-year-old right-hander had to see Pakistan through the potential crisis of yet another follow-on by adding 96 for the eighth wicket with Nadeem Khan, a plucky No 10 in his first Test. When joined by Nadeem just before tea, Pakistan had lost four wickets for 31 to the West Indies' second-string fast bowlers, Andy Cummins and Winston Benjamin, and were still 12 runs away from making the West Indies bat again.

Badly missed on the fine-leg boundary from a miscued hook off Curtly Ambrose only 10 minutes earlier when 51, Inzamam skilfully manipulated the strike until the job was done.

He had made 123 over five and a quarter hours and hit a six over midwicket off Carl Hooper's off-spin and 11 fours when he went back to Cummins and slapped a hard, low catch which Desmond Haynes, at 37 the oldest man on the field, held a couple of inches off the grass.

Inzamam came to the wicket after an hour's play and for the next hour and three-quarters, he and the solid right-hander Basit Ali added 88 with little bother before Cummins, who joins Durham next week for his first stint in county cricket, started the Pakistani slide with an excellent spell.

First, he beat Basit's attempted on- drive with a full-length delivery and bowled him off his pads for 56 and then claimed Rashid Latif lbw.

The West Indies could then claim the second new ball with the tail exposed and Benjamin quickly had Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis caught by Hooper at second slip.

But Benjamin's missed chance and the resolution of the ninth-wicket pair turned things round for the visitors, 2-0 down in the series and striving to avert a clean sweep.

(Third day: West Indies won toss)

WEST INDIES - First Innings 438 (C L Hooper 178no, R B Richardson 52; Waqar Younis 5-104).

PAKISTAN - First Innings

(Overnight: 85 for 3)

Asif Mujtaba c Haynes b Hooper. . . . . . . .59

Basit Ali b Cummins. . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Inzamam-ul-Haq c Haynes b Cummins. . . . . .123

] Rashid Latif lbw b Cummins. . . . . . . . . 2

* Wasim Akram c Hooper b Benjamin. . . . . . .9

Waqar Younis c Hooper b Benjamin. . . . . . . 4

Nadeem Khan c Murray b Cummins. . . . . . . .25

Ata-ur-Rehman not out. . . . . . . . . . . . .1

Extras (lb6 nb10). . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .326

Fall (cont): 4-108 5-196 6-206 7-221 8-227 9-323.

Bowling: Ambrose 23-9-40-1; Walsh 19-3-58-1; Benjamin 20-4-53-3; Cummins 20-4-54-4; Hooper 28-2-98-1; Simmons 5-0-17-0.

Umpires: H D Bird and S U Bucknor.

DEAN JONES, who was omitted from the Australian tour party, may spend the summer in England after all, writes Rob Steen. Durham are expected to appoint their former player as the second-team coach later this week. The promotion of Geoff Cook, last year's second-team coach, to executive directer has created a post that Jones is understood to have accepted. For the moment, Durham are reluctant to confirm the appointment. 'There is nothing concrete yet,' Cook said yesterday. 'We are still looking at other people to supervise the second team and fulfil the same role Keith Fletcher used to fill at Essex, but we expect to make an announcement by the end of the week.'