Marlon Samuels and captain Chris Gayle played contrasting innings as the West Indies belied their underdog status on the first day of the first Test against South Africa at St George’s Park on Wednesday.
Gayle hit an explosive 66 and Samuels made a watchful 94 as the West Indies reached 281 for four at the close after being sent in to bat on what proved to be an easy-paced pitch. Opening batsman Gayle hammered his runs off 48 balls in his first innings since injuring his right hamstring against Zimbabwe 26 days ago.
Mainly through Gayle, who was a doubtful starter until declaring himself fit shortly before the start, the West Indies raced to 130 for two at lunch but the scoring rate slowed during the afternoon as the South Africans opted for containment and the West Indian batsmen dug in.
Samuels and Shivnarine Chanderpaul were particularly careful as they eked out a 50-run partnership off 163 balls. But the rate picked up and they made the stand worth 100 off only another 58 balls.