A frenetic day of Test match cricket saw 17 wickets fall on Day 1 at the Providence Stadium in Guyana. Following the draw at the Port of Spain in Trinidad, with 148 overs lost due to rain, the second Test began in contrasting fashion. Shamar Joseph (5 for 33) and Jayden Seales (3 for 45) broke the back of South African batting. But Nandre Burger (2 for 32) and Wiaan Mulder (4 for 18) left the West Indies in tatters at the end of day’s play at 97 for 7, with South Africa still leading by 63 runs.
Shamar Joseph enjoyed the perfect homecoming with a five-for on his international debut in Guyana until Wiaan Mulder’s career-best 4 for 18 all but stole the show on a spicy surface at Providence Stadium. In total, 17 wickets fell, the most in a day of Test cricket at this venue, albeit in a small sample size of just three matches. There was swing through the air, seam movement and decent carry which has put the series-decider in fast-forward.
Pitch and Toss
It’s pitch number 4, we are told that this pitch offers uniform dimensions. Water content and hardness looks good as well. It’s a surface that excites me, there’s a good grass covering, it will offer pace for strokeplay and the pacers will also get some extra bounce, reckon Daren Ganga and Vernon Philander
South African skipper Temba Bavuma wins the toss and elect to bat with 2 changes in the playing XI as Dane Piedt and Nandre Burger coming in for Lungi Ngidi and Ryan Rickleton. West Indies skipper Kraigg Braithwaite who also wanted to bat first made one change in Playing XI bringing in Shamar Joseph for Kemar Roach.
Shamar Joseph 5-fer a star as South Africa gets bundled out for 160 in 1st Innings.
South Africa won the toss and opted to bat first on what looked like a good wicket with a decent covering of grass. Aiden Markram got the Proteas up and running in the first over with a cover drive for four. Tony de Zorzi, who looked in fine touch in Trinidad, lost his off-stump through the gate as the ball seamed inwards. With a hint of lateral movement, the West Indian pacers kept a tab on the scoring rate of the South Africans in the first hour.
Shamar Joseph, who came in for Kemar Roach, struck twice in his third over. Shamar Joseph first accounted for Markram, who left a ball outside off-stump that jagged back in considerably to have him bowled. Shamar Joseph followed it up with a similar delivery keeping low to captain Temba Bavuma, and trapping him in front. Tristan Stubbs and David Bedingham began a mini counter-attack after drinks but the former perished edging one to slip.
Bedingham and Mulder followed as they edged one to the keeper. Shamar Joseph came back to clean up Keshav Maharaj as the procession continued with the three wickets falling within 10 balls. Seales bowled Kagiso Rabada while Shamar Joseph picked up his third five-fer in Test match cricket castling Kyle Verreynne.
With the ream reeling at 97 for 9, Nandre Burger and Dane Piedt knocked the ball around and punished the loose deliveries with boundaries in a fighting last wicket stand of 63 runs. Gudakesh Motie was hit by Piedt for a four and a six in an over where he erred in control. They successfully frustrated the West Indies for 20 overs but the resistance came to an end when Motie trapped Burger in front as South Africa wrapped up at 160 at Tea.
There was movement through the air and off the seam from the outset which Aiden Markram experienced when he edged the third ball of the Test past third slip, after he opened the scoring with a cover drive off Holder. At the other end, Jayden Seales repeatedly brought the ball back into the left-handed Tony de Zorzi, who left a sizable bat-pad gap and was bowled in the fourth over.
Shamar Joseph was introduced in the seventh over and started dangerously. He got appreciable inswing and then had Markram misjudge the length and leave the ball, only to knock over the off stump. That was Shamar Joseph’s first wicket on his home ground. Two balls later, he had Temba Bavuma trapped in the crease as a slightly shorter delivery hit the South African captain low in front of the stumps to dismiss him for a second-ball duck. South Africa went to the first drinks break on 20 for 3.
David Bedingham hit the first boundary off Joseph when he flayed him behind point for four but Tristan Stubbs had a much harder time getting off the mark. He faced 19 balls before he got his first run. By then, he had survived an lbw appeal off Joseph that was adjudged high and edged Seales just short of Holder at second slip. As his innings grew, Stubbs continued to keep the slips in play and West Indies in the hunt. And he wasn’t the only one who gave West Indies a glimpse into the lower order.
Bedingham flirted with danger when, on 11, he hit Jomel Warrican over mid-on. Three fielders converged on the chance but no one could get there. In the next over, Stubbs, who had reached 26, was drawn forward by Holder and edged to Warrican at slip but he fell over trying to hold on. If Holder was irritated at the missed opportunity, it did not last long. In his next over, Stubbs reached for an outswinger and was well caught by a leaping Kavem Hodge at third slip, 10 minutes before the lunch break. South Africa were 64 for 4 at the interval.
Joseph resumed after the break and was convinced he had Bedingham out in his second over with a ball that jagged in and beat the inside edge. Kraig Braithwaite reviewed but Bedingham survived on umpire’s call. Four balls later, Joseph made sure there was no doubt when Bedingham drove at a full ball and was caught behind.
West Indies were into the last recognized pair and separated them in the next over with a peach from Seales that forced Wiaan Mulder to play and found his outside edge. Kyle Verreynne could have been out off the next ball when he edged Sealed to gully but was dropped. Two balls later, Joseph beat Keshav Maharaj for pace and bowled him, then Rabada was cleaned up by Seales, and when Verreynne played on off Joseph, West Indies could celebrate for all kinds of reasons.
Joseph had completed his third Test five-for, and first at home after a tough tour of England, and celebrated by blowing kisses to the sparsely populated stands. South Africa were 97 for 9, and in danger of being bowled out for less than their lowest score against West Indies: 116.
But Piedt had other ideas. He took South Africa over 100 with a cover drive for four and tactically West Indies eased off. They brought on Gudakesh Motie, he dropped it short, and Piedt pulled him for four, then hit him down the ground for six and through the covers for four more.
In frustration, West Indies reviewed two chances off Piedt in Holder’s next over: one an lbw appeal that was clipping leg on umpire’s call and another where the impact was outside the off stump. It didn’t help that Joseph left the field with a cramp and wicketkeeper Joshua da Silva gave the gloves to Tevin Imlach after suffering a finger injury. Depleted in personnel terms, the hosts seemed sapped.
Piedt and Burger took South Africa past 141 – their lowest Test score in the West Indies – as the second session was extended with West Indies in search of the final wicket. It came 17 minutes after the scheduled tea break when Burger missed a length ball from Motie and was given out lbw to give West Indies’ premier spinner his first wicket of the series.
South Africa fights back to keep West Indies for 97 for 7 as Wiaan Mulders 4-fer pegs WI back
West Indies might have gone into the break as the happier side but South Africa were out to change that. And change that, they did.
Burger bowled a jaffa to uproot Mikyle Louis’ off stump in the second over of the innings. Keacy Carty, who had a decent debut just last week, scored a flurry of boundaries to get the scoreboard racing. The move by South Africa to bring Mulder in early worked wonders as he immediately castled skipper Kraigg Brathwaite. Alick Athanaze fell soon after as Mulder hung on to a reflexive catch of his own bowling. He followed it up with another wicket as Hodge nicked it to third slip, making it three in as many of his overs.
Carty, who was playing a positive counter-attacking knock, was the next to go flicking one to midwicket off Burger. Mulder came back to pick up Joshua da Silva that left the hosts reeling at 56 for 6. Holder was positive against Mulder, scoring two boundaries in an over. Motie stayed in there occupying the crease while Holder picked up the odd boundary. With stumps on the horizon, Motie missed the pull of a short delivery of Maharaj to which he was adjudged LBW, bringing a rollicking day of Test cricket to an end.
Buoyed by the bonus runs, South Africa took to the field with wickets on their mind and believed they had one off the third ball. Rabada beat Braithwaite’ inside edge and hit him above the knee roll and Bavuma reviewed only to see the ball missing the stumps. But the wait for a breakthrough did not last long. Left-armer Burger, in his third Test, set Mikyle Louis up with a series of away-swingers and then landed one on a good length to beat the outside edge and bowl the West Indian opener.
Keacy Carty took a liking to the outswing and took three fours off Burger’s next two overs, prompting the early introduction of the third seamer, Mulder. Not often regarded as an out-and-out strike bowler, Mulder made the case for a rethink when his second ball squeezed between Braithwaite’s bat-pad gap and removed the West Indian captain.
Impressive became excellent when Mulder took a stunning catch off his own bowling in the next over – a one-handed grab to the right – to dismiss Alick Athanaze and then found swing to entice a drive from Hodge, who was caught at third slip.
With only three seamers in South Africa’s XI, Burger was brought back on at Rabada’s end and struggled to get his line right as he directed the ball down leg. Bavuma put a leg slip in place and Carty hit the next ball straight to Maharaj at a shortish midwicket to leave West Indies 47 for 5.
Things could have got a lot worse in the next over when Holder was given out lbw off Mulder but reviewed successfully with ball tracking indicating it was missing leg. Mulder got his fourth anyway, when Da Silva edged him to second slip. Holder took the fight to South Africa, hit three fours in four balls and shared a 41-run stand with Motie, which could have ended the day on par.
But Maharaj had the last say on the day when Motie missed a sweep and was given out lbw, to leave West Indies 63 runs behind with only three first-innings wickets in hand. Day two promises more drama.
Road Ahead for West Indies and South Africa on Day 2
In stark contrast to the slowness of the Trinidad Test, which was also pockmarked with rain interruptions, the action took place in overdrive under blue skies in Guyana. Despite both captains’ desire to bat first, it was a day for the bowlers, especially fast bowlers, who bowled 68 of 82.2 overs and took 15 wickets. Only one batter – Jason Holder – in the top six of either side scored more than 30 and it was a record 10th-wicket partnership for South Africa against West Indies of 63 between Dane Piedt and Nandre Burger that gave the visitors the advantage.
Windies are reeling as well. They are 97 for 7 after bundling out the SA team for 160. Seales and Joseph accounted for the 8 off the 10 wickets. And SA never had many answers to the duo. But then Windies came out to bat and the Burger-Mulder show started. The pacers had a field day today after both teams had opted for two regular spinners in their line ups during the toss. But the ball has moved considerably. It it hard for batting but it might ease out on day 2.