Proteas bowling coach Allan Donald believes the wicket of Shivnarine Chanderpaul is key to the chances of his team snatching victory.

‘We knew the West Indies would come here and front up, and this pitch is probably tailor-made for a guy like Chanderpaul, where he will just grind away,’ he said. ‘If we get Shivnarine Chanderpaul out, we know we can, respectfully, race through them.’

First they have to break the partnership of Kraigg Brathwaite and Marlon Samuels, who have put on 92 for the third wicket.

‘Brathwaite and Samuels batted smartly,’ Donald said. ‘Morne bowled an inspiring spell to get his wickets but when he dished it out, they played exceptionally well. You need someone like Morne or Dale Steyn to bowl two lengths and mix it up a little.  We’ve got to stay patient with this partnership.’

While Steyn ended the day  without success, Donald recalled his performance on this ground against Australia at the beginning of this year. ‘We saw a magnificent spell there when he just went through the gears,’ he said. ‘He is that sort of bowler that picks his time and knows when to really step it up and bowl at his optimum pace. It will require that sort of skill, patience and aggression to open up an end.’

West Indies captain Denesh Ramdin hailed his side’s best day on tour.

Ramdin praised his bowlers, who took five wickets for 128 runs, despite a lightning 58 off 28 balls by Dale Steyn, and said the West Indian batsmen had made a good start.

He said the bowlers had absorbed the lessons of their first Test defeat in Centurion by bowling accurately on a slow pitch and denying the South African batsmen width.

“Then the young Kraigg Brathwaite batted really well and Marlon Samuels showed his class and maturity,” said Ramdin.

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