Hosts Pakistan win toss, bat in delayed first West Indies test

Pakistan skipper Shan Masood won the toss and opted to bat in the first test against the West Indies in Multan on Friday after poor visibility delayed the start by two-and-a-half hours.

Umpires inspected the conditions twice after the scheduled toss at 9:00 am (0400 GMT) was put back because of what the Pakistan Cricket Board called fog.

The air quality in Multan was "unhealthy for sensitive groups" and set to rise throughout the day, according to monitoring site IQAir.

Both teams entered the test with three spinners and a single frontline fast bowler, with the dry and grassless Multan Stadium pitch expected to turn from the early stages.

Pakistan handed a test debut to 22-year-old opener Muhammad Hurraira. Top-order batsman Tevin Imlach is also playing his first test for the tourists.

The two-match series is part of the World Test Championship, in which Pakistan are eighth and the West Indies ninth and last.

The second test starts from January 25, also in Multan.

Teams:

Pakistan: Shan Masood (captain), Muhammad Hurraira, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan, Salman Agha, Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Khurram Shahzad, Abrar Ahmed

West Indies: Kraigg Brathwaite (captain), Alick Athanaze, Keacy Carty, Justin Greaves, Kavem Hodge, Tevin Imlach, Mikyle Louis, Gudakesh Motie, Kevin Sinclair, Jayden Seales, Jomel Warrican

Umpires: Rodney Tucker (AUS) and Richard Kettleborough (ENG) Tv umpire: Paul Reiffel (AUS)

Match referee: Ranjan Madugalle (SRI)