Jon Cardinelli reflects on the big moments that shaped day two of the Test at Newlands.
BATSMAN OF THE DAY
Hashim Amla played some majestic drives through the covers and straight of the wicket. His half century was superbly paced, and the Proteas will be looking for a similarly controlled effort on day three.
BOWLER OF THE DAY
Dale Steyn bowled quickly and aggressively during the first hour of play, and may have picked up a five-for if not for a similarly destructive spell by Morné Morkel.
SHOT OF THE DAY
Midway through the final session, Hashim Amla drove a full-length Shannon Gabriel delivery between mid-off and cover for four. The timing and placement of the shot was impeccable.
DELIVERY OF THE DAY
Early in the South African innings, Jerome Taylor came around the wicket and nearly decapitated Dean Elgar with a well-directed bouncer.
FAIL OF THE DAY
Immediately after lunch, Jason Holder produced a special delivery to find the edge of Faf du Plessis’s bat. Unfortunately, for the West Indies, the ball bisected first and second slip and went to the fence. Perhaps the fielders could have done more to attempt a catch.
BUCKING THE LATE LAPSE TREND…
Shortly before lunch on day one, Devon Smith was dismissed. Marlon Samuels gave his wicket away before tea, and Denesh Ramdin was out before the close of play. The first session on day two ended in a similar fashion, with Dean Elgar losing his wicket right before lunch. The South Africans showed more composure in the subsequent two sessions, and bucked the trend.
… BUT STILL FAILING TO CONVERT
Two West Indies batsman scored in the 40s, while three made it past 50. None were able to convert those starts into three-figure scores. South Africa had the same problem on day two, with Alviro Petersen falling on 42 and Faf du Plessis on 68. The hosts will hope that captain Hashim Amla converts his 55 into a ton on day three.
AWFUL OVER RATE
Day two witnessed just 80.3 overs of play. This cannot be blamed on the rain, which only interrupted proceedings at 17:30, the scheduled close of play.
STAT OF CONCERN
Alviro Petersen looked to be on course for a 50, and possibly even a century, before he ran himself out in the second session. It’s now been 10 innings since he scored a 50, and 26 since he surpassed the 100-mark.
FAST FORGIVENESS
In the first session, Temba Bavuma incurred the wrath of Dale Steyn when an overthrow cost the fast bowler two extra runs. Before the start of Steyn’s subsequent over, Bavuma raced all the way from the railway stand to where Steyn was wandering in at the north-east stand. The pair walked all the way to Steyn’s bowling mark, with Bavuma doing much of the talking. By the end of the chat, Steyn was patting the youngster on the back reassuringly.
