West Indies captain Darren Sammy commended his team for battling it out in the first Test against Pakistan, and said they badly needed the win after some ordinary performances at home.


Sammy

The West Indies won the closely contested match by 40 runs on Sunday and claimed their first Test victory in over two years. The West Indies made 226 and 152 and bowled Pakistan out for 160 and 178.

"We as a team needed this performance," said Sammy, who got the man of the match award for picking up seven wickets.

"Lately, things had not been going well but I had the belief, this team had the belief," Sammy said. Sammy praised the batsmen for showing patience and hanging on a 'tough' wicket. In the second innings West Indies were struggling at 74/6 before veteran Shivnarine Chanderpaul (36 not out) and newcomer Devendra Bishoo (24) shared a crucial 48-run partnership for the ninth wicket. "It was a difficult pitch. We found ourselves not playing the spin too well. But I commend the guys for the effort," he said.