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Pakistan secured the championship title in the inaugural Over 40s Cricket Global Cup with a commanding victory over West Indies, defeating them by a margin of 152 runs in the final match held at the National Bank Stadium on Monday.

Led by Captain Misbah-ul-Haq’s outstanding century, Pakistan posted a formidable total of 328/4 in their allotted 45 overs. They then proceeded to dismiss West Indies for a mere 176 runs in 38.5 overs, with spinner Abdul Qadir shining with six wickets for just 35 runs.

Misbah won the toss and chose to bat first, even after a competitive toss-off with opposing captain Narsingh Deonarine. West Indies put up a strong initial defense, containing Pakistani openers Abdul Razzaq and Amjad Ali, who had dominated the Australian bowlers in the semifinals at the same venue.

Despite a quiet start and the quick departures of Razzaq (38 off 58 balls) and Amjad (28 off 28 balls), the stage was set for Captain Misbah to lead by example. He did just that by forming a partnership of 173 runs for the third wicket with Hassan Raza, who contributed 68 runs off 64 balls. Misbah departed after scoring an impressive 106 runs off 93 balls, featuring seven sixes and six fours.

Tasawwar Abbas played a crucial cameo, remaining unbeaten with 58 runs off just 21 balls, helping Pakistan accumulate nearly 100 runs in the last seven overs to boost their total. The standout bowler for West Indies was former Test leg-spinner Mahendra Nagamootoo, who claimed 2-50.

West Indies began their chase of 329 with optimism, as openers Randy Thomas (37 off 51 balls) and Devindra Maharaj (17 off 34 balls) negotiated the initial overs against the new ball operators, Muhammad Sami and Imran Ali, forging a 57-run partnership. However, the introduction of spin led to their downfall, with Abdul Qadir’s sensational spell, resulting in six wickets, sealing the fate of the match.

Although Lawrence Farnum (41 off 54 balls) and Sanjeev Gooljar (28 off 37 balls) provided some resistance with a partnership of 65 runs for the eighth wicket, Hassan Raza took the last three wickets in quick succession to secure the victory for Pakistan.