Bravo's heroics in vain as Pakistan win day-night test

DUBAI - A heroic and historic century from Darren Bravo put West Indies in sight of the unlikeliest win in the first test in Dubai before Pakistan finally prevailed by 56 runs on an absorbing final day of the day-night contest. Chasing a daunting target of 346, Bravo compiled the eighth test ton of his career to offer the faint prospect of a fantastic West Indies win after they had trailed by 222 on first innings following Pakistan's monumental 579 for three. It was the first century to be scored in day-night test cricket using the pink ball. Bravo's patient batting, following his 87 in the first innings, kept alive West Indies' hopes after Devendra Bishoo's eight-wicket haul had brought them back into the match on the penultimate day. Yet once Bravo's 249-ball vigil was ended when he became the seventh Windies victim, caught brilliantly for 116 by Yasir Shah off his own bowling, there was only going to be one fitting outcome to Pakistan's 400th test. Noble resistance from captain Jason Holder, unbeaten on 40, kept alive the faintest hopes of Windies survival into the final hour but the run-outs of tail-enders Miguel Cummins and Shannon Gabriel, as Holder attempted to farm the strike, ensured Pakistan took a 1-0 lead in the three-test series.   SCOREBOARD

Pakistan    1st innings 579 for 3 decl (A. Ali 302no, S. Aslam 90, B. Azam 69, A. Shafiq 67) 
West Indies 1st innings 357            (D. Bravo 87, M. Samuels 76; Y. Shah 5-121)           
Pakistan    2nd innings 123            (D. Bishoo 8-49)                                      
West Indies 2nd innings (Overnight: 95-2; Target: 346 runs)
K. Brathwaite               b Amir                      6   
L. Johnson                  lbw b Amir                  47  
Da. Bravo                   c&b Shah                116 
M. Samuels                  c S. Ahmed b Amir           4   
J. Blackwood                lbw b Nawaz                 15  
R. Chase                    b Shah                      35  
S. Dowrich                  b Riaz                      0   
J. Holder                   not out                     40  
D. Bishoo                   lbw b Nawaz                 3   
M. Cummins                  run out (, Misbah-ul-Haq)   1   
S. Gabriel                  run out (B. Azam, S. Ahmed) 1   
Extras                      (b-5 lb-7 nb-4 w-5)         21  
Total                       (all out, 109 overs)        289 
Fall of wickets: 1-27 K. Brathwaite,2-87 L. Johnson,3-95 M. Samuels,4-116 J. Blackwood,5-193 R. Chase,6-194 S. Dowrich,7-263 Da. Bravo,8-276 D. Bishoo,9-277 M. Cummins,10-289 S. Gabriel
Bowling                
M. Amir                     23 - 5 - 63 - 3(w-5)            
So. Khan                    10 - 1 - 22 - 0                 
Y. Shah                     41 - 6 - 113 - 2                
M. Nawaz                    18 - 4 - 32 - 2                 
W. Riaz                     17 - 1 - 47 - 1(nb-4)           
Referees               
Umpire: Richard Illingworth                                 
Umpire: Paul Reiffel                                        
TV umpire: Ian Gould                                        
Match referee: Jeff Crowe                                   
Result: Pakistan won by 56 runs -Reuters