By Zainab Shafiq 
West Indies have parked the 5–0 drubbing in Australia and are framing the next fortnight as a fresh start. With Shai Hope urging calm and clarity, the Pakistan vs West Indies T20I series is being cast as a course correction rather than a crisis. The captain wants his side to channel the sting of defeat into smarter, calmer cricket when the Pakistan vs West Indies T20I series begins on July 31.
Pakistan vs West Indies T20I series: a chance to reboot
Hope’s post-series debrief in the Caribbean was blunt: the batting never completed the job. Promising takeoffs faded into middling totals, an opening stand of 125 that didn’t launch, starts of 63/0 and 123/1 that stalled, and finishes that left bowlers defending too little. Across five games, West Indies batted first every time and watched Australia chase with comfort. Hope didn’t hide behind luck he acknowledged losing all the tosses, but he underlined the Caribbean truth: targets are tougher than chases when dew, wind and a visible scoreboard favor the second innings.
“I think here in the Caribbean, we all know the stats show chasing is always the better thing to do,” he said.
“Whether it’s the dew factor, wind factor, you always have that scoreboard in front of you, so you have an idea of how to go about the chase. But it’s something that I can’t control. Unfortunately, I didn’t win any [tosses]… It’s just one of those things for us.”
The message for Pakistan? West Indies must stitch 20 overs of intent into one thread. That means middle-overs rhythm instead of stalls, and finishes that match their powerful starts. If selection leans toward a stable top three and a clear finisher’s role, those “nearly” totals can become winning ones.
Bowling positives amid the pain
For all the scoreboard pressure, the attack found its bearings late in the Australian series. Yorkers started to land, fields tightened, and phases were won, just not enough of them. Hope credited his bowlers for hanging in when the equation was stacked. With a cleaner batting template and a firmer grip on the powerplay, West Indies believe the same group can look far more dangerous against Pakistan.
Expect tactical tweaks too: if conditions suit, chasing will be prioritized whenever the coin allows. And if they bat first, the target will be built in layers, platform, consolidation, then a final burst, rather than a boom-and-bust cycle.
“As a batting group, we didn’t really give ourselves the best chance to put a big score on the board consistently. And that’s probably where we fell short. We’ve always been one step behind the eight-ball.”
The countdown is on to July 31, and the mood in camp is pragmatic. The wounds are fresh, but so is the opportunity. This is less about reinvention and more about execution, ball after ball, over after over, when the Pakistan vs West Indies T20I series gets underway.
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