Pakistan face fifth bowler dilemma ahead of West Indies decider

Shai Hope (right) of West Indies is stumped by Mohammad Rizwan of Pakistan during the second One Day International (ODI) cricket match between West Indies and Pakistan at Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba, San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago on August 10, 2025. (AFP)
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Updated 11 August 2025
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Pakistan face fifth bowler dilemma ahead of West Indies decider

  • Pakistan’s part-time Saim Ayub, Salman Agha dup conceded combined 66 runs in seven wicketless overs
  • Pakistan, who won preceding T20 series 2-1, are currently tied with West Indies in three-match ODIs 1-1

Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan acknowledged a dilemma over the fifth bowler and said they would take a late decision on their team combination for Tuesday’s series decider following their defeat in the second one-day international on Sunday.

Pakistan, who won the opening ODI by five wickets, posted a competitive 171-7 in 37 overs in a rain-truncated match but West Indies prevailed by five wickets to draw level in the three-match series.

Pakistan’s part-time duo of Saim Ayub and Salman Agha conceded a combined 66 runs in seven wicketless overs as West Indies cruised home.

“You could say our fifth bowler gave away too many runs but in recent years, Salman Agha and Saim Ayub have both bowled well for us,” Rizwan said after the match.

“Saim didn’t have the best day today, but he performed well in the T20Is. That’s just part of the game.”

Rizwan said they could not read the conditions and several rain delays did not help their cause.

“Honestly, the weather forecast has been completely different from expectations, and it’s hard to read.

“We’re keeping our options open and will finalize the XI after assessing the conditions.”

Pakistan had won the preceding Twenty20 series 2-1. 


Hundreds of migrants, including Pakistanis, land in Greece after search operation at sea

Updated 19 December 2025
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Hundreds of migrants, including Pakistanis, land in Greece after search operation at sea

  • Rescued migrants were taken to a temporary facility on Crete after reaching the port of Agia Galini
  • Greece has made deportations of rejected asylum seekers a priority under its migration policy

ATHENS: Greece’s Coast Guard rescued about 540 migrants from a fishing boat off ​Europe’s southernmost island of Gavdos on Friday, one of the biggest groups to reach the country in recent months.

The migrants were found during a Greek search operation some 16 nautical miles (29.6 km) off Gavdos, a Coast Guard statement said. They are all well and are being taken ‌to a ‌temporary facility on the nearby ‌island ⁠of ​Crete after ‌reaching the port of Agia Galini, a Coast Guard official said, adding most of the migrants were men from Bangladesh, Egypt and Pakistan.

In a separate incident on Thursday, the EU’s border agency Frontex rescued 65 men and five women from two ⁠migrant boats in distress off Gavdos, the Greek Coast Guard ‌said.

Greece was on the front ‍line of a 2015-16 ‍migration crisis when more than a million people ‍from the Middle East and Africa landed on its shores before moving on to other European countries, mainly Germany.

Flows have ebbed since then, but both Crete ​and Gavdos — the two Mediterranean islands nearest to the African coast — have seen a steep rise ⁠in migrant boats, mainly from Libya, reaching their shores over the past year and deadly accidents remain common along that route.

Greece, Cyprus, Spain and Italy will be eligible for help in dealing with migratory pressures under a new EU mechanism when the bloc’s pact on migration and asylum enters into force in mid-2026.

The center-right government of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has said deportation of rejected asylum ‌seekers will be a priority.