Twitter Reactions: Pacers dominate as South Africa clinch comprehensive victory over West Indies in 1st Test
Temba Bavuma-led South Africa emerged victorious by 87 runs.
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Hosts South Africa claimed their first win in the Test series against West Indies, courtesy of their dominant bowling display in the final innings. Temba Bavuma and Co. emerged victorious by 87 runs in the first of the two-match series at the SuperSport Park in Centurion on Day 3.
As the hosts began the day’s play with a lead of 179 runs having scored 49 runs for the loss of four, the side struggled to get runs on Day 3. Opener Aiden Markram, who got off to a fluent start on the second day, continued to display impressive strokes with his willow but was unable to convert it into a big score.
The flamboyant batter was sent packing by veteran pacer Kemar Roach for a score of 47 runs off 58 balls. It did not take too long for the Windies bowlers to clean the rest of the line-up as South Africa were dismissed for 116 runs, thereby posting a target of 247 runs for the visitors to chase.
Notably, Roach attained an impressive milestone as he claimed his 11th five-for in Test cricket. In addition to this, he surpassed Joel Garner's tally of 259 wickets to become Windies’ fifth-highest wicket-taker in the red-ball format.
Proteas pace attack rattles the Windies
The Windies threatened to turn the tables by rolling South Africa over during the chase, however, a batting collapse set the tone of the contest. In response to the total, skipper Kraigg Brathwaite and Tagenarine Chanderpaul failed to lay a solid foundation. With just 20 runs on the board, Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen struck twice in quick time to shift the momentum in South Africa's favor.
Jermaine Blackwood, who came in the middle-order had an optimistic approach to his game as he played delicately to steer the side to a potential win. Hoicking the ball into the boundaries at regular intervals, the batter scored a gritty half-century.
However, as Rabada hit the deck hard and outfoxed the batter thereby claiming a five-for, the Windies lost the plot in the chase. In addition to this, Anrich Nortje and Gerald Coetzee claimed a wicket each to keep the pressure mounting on the rival side.
Rabada struck the final blow as he trapped Roach by dismissing the batter on an LBW to seal the contest by 87 runs. Impressively, the pacer returned with majestic bowling figures of 6/50 in his 15 overs to hand the lead to the hosts.
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