Gros Islet – West Indies made a strong start against South Africa before lunch in the second Test in St Lucia.
At the interval, the South Africans, sent into bat, were 44 for three in their first innings on the rain-marred first day of the Test at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground with their captain Dean Elgar not out on 22 and Kyle Verreynne not out on one.
Pacer Shannon Gabriel came into the Windies line-up for the Test ahead of off-spinner Rahkeem Cornwall and gave the hosts an early breakthrough, when he had opener Aiden Markram caught at backward point for a third-ball duck, cutting at a short, wide, rising ball in the second over of the day.
There was a 15-minute delay to the start because of rain and the weather intervened after 20 minutes with South Africa four for one in the fourth over.
The players returned after 12 minutes, and West Indies had further success, when Keegan Petersen was caught at second slip off Jayden Seales for seven, edging a loose, flat-footed drive.
More success came for the Windies, when Kemar Roach bowled Rassie van der Dussen for four, the batsman offering no stroke to a delivery moving back from outside the off-stump.
But the home team failed to make further headway, and Elgar and Verreynne batted through a shade over half-hour before the interval to stem the fall of wickets.
West Indies trail 0-1 in the two-Test series, after they crashed to an innings and 63 runs defeat inside three days in the first Test, which ended last Saturday at the same venue.
Though the Vivian Richards Trophy, symbol of Test supremacy between the two sides, is destined to return to Johannesburg, West Indies will be aiming to square the series and avoid their first series defeat of the year.
Summarised scores:
South Africa 44 for three (Dean Elgar 22 not out) vs West Indies.
(AR)
