Justin Greaves had gone six overs without a wicket and was starting to wonder if his day was done. Then something clicked.
The 32-year-old Barbadian all-rounder ripped through Pakistan's batting order at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Trinidad on Saturday, taking five wickets without conceding a single run. It was his first-ever five-wicket haul in Test cricket — and it came out of nowhere.
"When I came on, captain Roston Chase just said 'continue to be disciplined in what you are doing' and to see if I can get some wickets for the team," Greaves said. "The ball nipped around and I got some reward."
What followed was remarkable. Greaves delivered five consecutive wicket maidens — meaning he bowled five overs in a row without Pakistan scoring. His first victim was Pakistan captain Shan Masood, who had made a fluent 109 before Greaves cleaned up his stumps with a ball that tailed back in after being pushed wide outside off stump. One over later, Greaves uprooted Aamer Jamal's middle stump. He then trapped Ali Usman lbw, before having Mohammed Rizwan and Mohammad Abbas both caught behind.
Pakistan lost their last seven wickets for just 38 runs, collapsing to 282 in response to West Indies' first-innings total of 311. Greaves finished with figures of 5 for 27 — an economy rate that defied belief.
"To get five wickets for the first time in Test cricket, I'm really happy, but there's still a lot of work to do in the game," he said. "Anytime I get the ball in hand, the team looks to me to be that solid player for them and try to dig us out of situations."
After Pakistan's collapse, West Indies reached stumps on day three at 126 for 7 in their second innings — a lead of 155 runs. The match remains tightly balanced, with both teams still in with a chance of winning.
Greaves, who was playing his 17th Test, had struggled earlier in the day with figures of 0 for 27 from six overs. But he kept his patience, kept running in, and waited for the moment to arrive.
It did — spectacularly.