SA level series
West Indies' Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who scored an unbeaten 70, plays a pull in the second innings on the fourth day of the second Test against South Africa in Cape Town yesterday.Photo: AFP
South Africa successfully chased down 185 runs on the fourth day of the second Test to win by seven wickets, levelling the three-match series with West Indies 1-1 at Newlands on Saturday.
Skipper Graeme Smith hit a forceful 85 off 79 balls that included eleven boundaries. The hosts rushed towards their second innings target after they dismissed West Indies for 262 at the stroke of tea.
Their captain Chris Gayle batted with a broken left thumb and shared a last wicket partnership of 70 runs with Shivnarine Chanderpaul on the fourth day.
Chanderpaul again stood firm for the tourists. He was unbeaten on 70 after batting for 299 minutes and facing 168 balls.
Gayle hit 38, with 37 of the runs coming off 29 balls in the last wicket stand before he was caught at long-on off Dale Steyn after hitting four fours and three sixes.
Gayle was struck on the thumb by a delivery from Andre Nel four balls into the first over of the day. After lengthy treatment on the field he retired hurt without adding to his overnight score of one.
X-rays showed he had a fractured thumb but he returned to the wicket when his side were nine down and only 114 runs ahead.
Gayle, batting with a runner because of a hamstring injury, swung powerfully whenever the ball was in his range although it was obvious he was in pain.
Chanderpaul, who had scarcely played an attacking stroke for most of his innings, started going for his shots as well and the pair needed only 53 balls for their partnership.
Chanderpaul made 64 not out in the first innings. He batted for a total of 644 minutes in the match and faced 391 balls for his match total of 134 runs.
It was a frustrating day for the South Africans, who seemed set to wrap up the innings cheaply when Gayle's injury was followed by the dismissal of Dwayne Bravo for 12 and Rawl Lewis for one.
But Jerome Taylor was dropped by Graeme Smith at first slip off Makhaya Ntini when he had one and went on to make 21, while Fidel Edwards, like Gayle batting with a runner, made a career-best 21 in a ninth wicket stand of 25 with Chanderpaul.
Steyn, despite not being able to bowl at top speed because of a hamstring strain, took four for 44 while Nel took three for 62.
South African opening batsman Neil McKenzie joined the match's growing casualty list when it was announced he had suffered a torn right calf muscle while fielding Friday and would be out of action for between four and six weeks.
It was not known whether he would be able to bat but because he was off the field for most of the second innings he would be unable to open and would have to bat at number seven.
Comments