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Wes Durston has called time on his Derbyshire career by mutual consent.Durston, 36, leaves Derbyshire after making 218 appearances since his debut in 2010, scoring 7,628 runs across all formats. He also skippered Derbyshire in limited-overs cricket.Cricket advisory director, Kevin Dean said: “Wes has been a tremendous player for Derbyshire and we would like to thank him for his efforts over the last seven seasons. He made many notable contributions down the years, no more than in our 2012 promotion winning season, but both parties feel that the time is now right to move on. We wish Wes all the very best for the future.”Durston’s uncomplicated see-ball, hit-ball approach made him a favourite with Derbyshire supporters and probably testified to a late-developing career that had a reawakening in his thirties after he had been released early by Somerset. But he began to show his age in 2016 and with the new director of cricket, Kim Barnett, intent on a shake-up, his departure is no surprise.

Peter Moores has been appointed as Nottinghamshire’s head coach, as the club aims to bounce back from a disappointing 2016 season.Moores, who was signed as a coaching consultant at Trent Bridge in July 2015, has been handed a three-year deal and takes over the day-to-day running of the first team from Mick Newell, who will continue to oversee the club’s wider fortunes as director of cricket.In addition to his two spells as England head coach, from 2007 to 2009 and again from 2014 to 2015, Moores took charge of the ECB’s National Academy Director for a two-year period from April 2005 and is a two-times winner of the County Championship, with Sussex in 2003 and with Lancashire in 2011.”To be offered the chance to become Head Coach of a Club like Notts, at a venue as special as Trent Bridge, is a terrific honour,” said Moores.”Working with cricketers one-to-one for the last year has been an ideal way to get me back in to county cricket, and it means I already know this group of players very well, which will give me a head start in some ways.”The passion for being a head coach again is there and the club has the ambition to be competing for trophies across all three formats of the game, so it’s a fantastic opportunity.”The appointment comes at a perilous moment for Nottinghamshire, who look doomed to relegation from the top tier of the County Championship. However, with Yorkshire on the look-out for a new director of cricket following confirmation of Jason Gillespie’s impending return to Australia, the club has moved quickly to retain the services of a man whose coaching abilities are held in high esteem on the county circuit.Newell, who has been in charge of Nottinghamshire’s first XI since 2002, guided the county to two Championship titles in 2005 and 2010, but has accepted the time is right to step back from club’s day-to-day running.”Having a director of cricket and head coach working in partnership is something that’s happening a lot in county cricket, and we feel the time is now right to introduce it at Notts,” said Newell.”Peter will run the professional squad his way, he’ll pick the team and we’ll now work closely together in reviewing everything we do in relation to our playing and coaching, to ensure that we’re ready to bounce back strongly from what’s been a disappointing season.”It’s also vitally important that we work on our player pathway, ensuring that we’re doing everything right to develop our professional and international players of the future.”

With Mitchell Starc now extending his impressive form from the Tests into the ODIs, Sri Lanka have settled on a batting plan: see Starc out safely.Starc was already miserly during the first ODI. He did not concede a boundary in his 10 overs, which cost only 32. But he was also penetrative, taking three wickets. Each of those dismissals, however, was the result of an expansive drive gone awry. Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews said his team would seek to shelve the ambitious strokes against Starc, even if the pitch for the second ODI is better for batting than the previous surface.”We have a clear plan for him – to refrain from attacking him, so that we don’t give him wickets,” Mathews said. “If we can score 40 or 50 runs off him, we feel that we can catch up against the other bowlers. Because he’s bowling well, we should give him that respect. But at the same time we also have to put his loose balls away.”Starc became the fastest bowler to 100 ODI wickets on Sunday, but did not return the best figures of the evening. James Faulkner took 4 for 38 in his ten overs, and used slower balls to excellent effect.”With James Faulkner, his variations were excellent on that pitch, because of how dry it was,” Mathews said. “We struggled with those variations, so we’ll come with a plan tomorrow.”As far as Sri Lanka’s bowlers are concerned, left-arm wrist spinner Lakshan Sandakan took two wickets in his debut match but, as in the Tests, proved expensive as well, giving away 33 runs in five overs. Like in the Tests, Mathews brought him on to bowl relatively late in the innings. His first over was the 25th of the chase.”I wanted to spread the field a bit and bring Sandakan in with that protection – I didn’t want to bowl him in the Powerplay. We also have Amila Aponso, who bowled brilliantly, and also Dilruwan Perera, who’s very experienced in international cricket. I wanted to bring Sandakan on against guys like Matthew Wade and Faulkner, who haven’t seen him much. He didn’t bowl that well in the last Test, so he’s a bit low on confidence. I wanted to make sure to bring him on later and give him that protection.”Sri Lanka’s XI for the first ODI did not feature a specialist quick, with allrounders Thisara Perera and Mathews himself the only seam options. An injury to Nuwan Pradeep has now ruled yet another quick out of contention, but the hosts have named a batsman in Pradeep’s place. Coach Graham Ford said newcomer Angelo Perera may play at some point in the series.”The selectors felt that Angelo Perera played really well in England,” Ford said. “He’s a very capable player. I remember him from the first time I was involved with the team. He has a chance of playing. He had a good net today, so there’s a chance that he could be considered.”

ScorecardMustafizur Rahman had to wait for his visa but starred on debut•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Bangladesh pace bowler Mustafizur Rahman starred with four wickets for 23 after only arriving in this country on Wednesday, while Chris Jordan made amends for running out in-form New Zealander Ross Taylor with a match-winning 45 off 21 balls that contained five mighty sixes, to give Sussex only their second NatWest T20 Blast win in eight games.Mustafizur, whose arrival at the club had been delayed by visa issues, instantly impressed his new club with a match-sealing display.”It has taken some hard work to get Rahman here, and a lot of people have worked hard to make it happen. Now we can see why he was worth so much time and effort,” said Sussex’s captain, Luke Wright. “He is a very special bowler. He has put in a performance straight away that was very special to watch.”It is so hard to pick what he is going to do. In the warm-up we were trying to work him out and we couldn’t. Credit to our keeper Craig Cachopa who kept really well to him tonight – it is not easy when you’ve had no time to watch him before or to have faced him.”He got a flight yesterday so he’s come straight in and bowled like that. We have a very special talent on our hands.”Chasing 201 to win, Essex were ahead of Sussex’s comparative totals until the last four overs, and they had no one capable of matching Jordan’s late fireworks. Essex, losing for the second game in a row, finished 25 runs short thanks to the wiles of 20-year-old Mustafizur.Sussex had started well enough with fifty coming off the six powerplay overs. Chris Nash needed little help but received a dollop when Tom Westley’s shy from deep point missed the stumps, bounced up awkwardly off a matted wicket, wrong-footing Ryan ten Doeschate, and eluding two more fielders as it sped away for a five.Nash, who had hit Paul Walter for two successive fours through the off-side in the first over, was first to go when he scooped Matt Quinn into Browne’s hands at midwicket for a 16-ball 25.Luke Wright had just got into his stride when he was out. The Sussex captain nudged Lawrence almost out of James Foster’s hands for four and then cleared Westley on the long-on boundary for six. He tried again next ball but the ball dropped short and Westley took the catch diving forward. Wright’s frustration at going for 32 was palpable.Ashar Zaidi’s first two overs had gone for just 10, but the spinner’s third went for a match-changing 28 as Phil Salt got his measure. Salt moved from 12 to 33 in the space of a seven-ball over with two sixes over the offside boundary, plus two fours in the same area, before Taylor clubbed another maximum from the final ball.But Zaidi extracted a measure of revenge when he took the catch at short third man, two balls into the next over from Ravi Bopara, that saw the back of Salt for 33 from 19 balls. Bopara also stemmed the flood of runs with just two conceded from his second over.Bopara claimed his second victim when Westley took another catch on the long-leg rope to dismiss Matt Machan before Sussex lost Taylor, who went for a quick single from the non-striker’s end to Callum Taylor at midwicket only to find Jordan immovable.Jordan thumped a six to cow corner off Walter and then two more hooked and pulled off Bopara to give Sussex’s innings late momentum. Craig Cachopa also hammered Walter for six and had helped put on fifty for the sixth wicket in three and a half overs before he was pinned lbw by Graham Napier for 18. Jordan, though, kept going and belted two more sixes from Napier’s over.Essex’s reply got off to a bad start when Browne top-edged Tymal Mills to Rahman at fine leg in the second over before Lawrence and Westley set about righting the ship. They had the fifty up in the fifth over with Lawrence depositing Jofra Archer over long on and Westley taking two boundaries in three balls off Mills.The second-wicket partnership was worth 47 in little more than five overs when Archer trapped Westley lbw.Lawrence landed a second six over long-on off spinner Will Beer. But he was third man out, having just past his previous highest T20 score, when he played all around a delivery from Beer and was lbw for 36 from 26 balls.Zaidi had started slowly, but clobbered Beer through midwicket for four and then lofted him for six slightly squarer on the leg-side. But the former Sussex player was controversially run out for 18 when he appeared to be obstructed by the bowler Mills as he turned for a second run. The two players collided, Zaidi looking as if he barged into the fielder, and after a short debate the umpires upheld their decision.Bopara followed, hitting high but not too far as Wright pouched the catch at mid-on to give Mustafizur a first wicket. Crucially, that 16th over only went for two runs and Essex were still 66 from their target. Mustafizur took two wickets in three balls when he rearranged the stumps of James Foster and Callum Taylor, and then had ten Doeschate caught by Mills at backward point.

Usman Khawaja’s ability with the bat has never been in doubt, but there have been question-marks over his fielding during the course of his five years in international cricket. So it was again during Australia’s loss to West Indies on Monday in St Kitts, where he top scored with 98 but then spilled two early chances in the field to give reprieves to both of the West Indies openers.In the second over of the chase, Khawaja was at mid-on where he dropped a gettable chance from Andre Fletcher, and in the eighth over Khawaja was at long-on when he missed a sitter to reprieve Johnson Charles. Australia will need far sharper performances in the field when they take on West Indies and South Africa in Barbados in the push for a place in the tri-series final.”I don’t think we fielded particularly well and obviously I put my hand up in that department,” Khawaja said. “Sometimes you just have horrendous games and you just can’t do anything about it, the ball follows you around.”Obviously it’s a big part of cricket. A big part of what we do well. If we’re fielding well, we usually win games so it’s quite important. I’m not the first person to drop a catch. It happens. You try and move on as quickly as possible.”Australia’s first training session at Kensington Oval in Barbados focused solely on fielding, with no bowling or batting, as stand-in coach Justin Langer sought to turn around their sloppy work. The Australians take on South Afric on Sunday and West Indies on Tuesday, and the series has already shown the evenness of the three sides, with each team having won two and lost two.Australia are without opener David Warner, who broke his finger earlier in the series, which has allowed Khawaja to move up the order to open the batting alongside Aaron Finch. Khawaja looked comfortable in the role on Monday and although he missed out on a maiden ODI century, he is now averaging 46.66 in the format this year.”When I was younger I was always pigeonholed as a four-day player. It frustrated me a lot,” Khawaja said. “Even when I performed back in first grade cricket at the time when I was really young, I still wouldn’t get a chance at New South Wales.”I finally got a chance – I put some numbers on the board and I did well and we won a few games. Australia just had a set one-day team and no matter how many runs I scored in the Matador Cup, it was too hard to crack it.”

Mignon du Preez has announced that she will step down from captaining the South Africa Women’s team in all formats with immediate effect. She will be succeeded by legspinner Dane van Niekerk.Du Preez, who has led South Africa in 46 ODIs, 50 T20Is and a Test match in her four years as captain, said her decision to step down stemmed from a desire to focus more on her batting.

CSA contracts 14 women for 2016-17

Cricket South Africa has announced the 14 players who have been awarded contracts for the 2016-17 season:
Dane van Niekerk, Trisha Chetty, Mignon du Preez, Marizanne Kapp, Shabnim Ismail, Dinesha Devnarain, Matshipi Letsoalo, Moseline Daniels, Chloe Tryon, Sune Luus, Lizelle Lee, Masabata Klaas, Ayabonga Khakha, Andrie Steyn

“This was an incredibly difficult decision and took a lot of introspection, but ultimately I believe that this is the best step forward not only for myself, but for the team,” du Preez said. “Stepping down from the captaincy role will give me an opportunity to work on my own game, which has taken a downturn in the last couple of seasons. I believe I can make a better contribution by putting runs on the board, and offering support and advice to the next captain.”At 23, van Niekerk already has considerable international experience, having played 56 ODIs, 57 T20Is and a Test match. She described the appointment as “the biggest honour of [her] career so far”.”Captaining my country has been a dream since I began playing cricket, and I am humbled that CSA have chosen me for the job,” van Niekerk said. “I would like to thank Mignon for paving the way and bringing the team this far. I look forward to filling her shoes as best I can and moving the team forward.”

ScorecardBen Raine top-scored for Leicestershire and then took three wickets•Getty Images

Yorkshire Vikings were never in the hunt against Leicestershire Foxes who beat them by 54 runs with eight balls remaining in the NatWest T20 Blast at Headingley.It was a disappointing start to the campaign for Yorkshire, who are desperate to do well in the competition this season under a new young captain in Alex Lees, but who drew only 6,000 to Headingley.Leicestershire could feel delighted with the result after opening with a defeat to Northamptonshire last week.Chasing a 175 victory target, Yorkshire failed to put a substantial stand together in a game which was dominated by Ben Raine and the O’Brien brothers, Kevin and Niall.Raine top-scored with 48 before opening the bowling and capturing 3 for 7 in his 3.4 overs. Niall O’Brien powered his way to 39 while Kevin hit 21 and then took three for 27.Yorkshire lost wickets at regular intervals and openers Adam Lyth and new one-day captain, Alex Lees, were both out inside the first five overs, Lyth driving Raine to mid-off and Lees turning Kevin O’Brien to leg-gully.Only Will Rhodes showed any real form, coming in at 32 for 4 and smacking 45 with three fours and two sixes before departing at 109 for 9 by driving Neil Dexter to Tom Wells at long off, by which time the game was well and truly lost for Yorkshire.A late flurry of sixes had revitalised the Foxes’ innings with 102 coming off the final ten overs. It was off the fourth delivery of the 14th over that Niall O’Brien straight drove Lyth for the first six of the match but another eight were to clear the rope in the remaining overs for Leicestershire to close on a competitive 174 for seven.All four of Niall O’Brian’s boundary shots in his 39 off 21 balls came from six hits while Raine included two fours and two sixes in his 48 from 43 deliveries.But Lewis Hill was responsible for the final flourish with three mid-wicket sixes in the last over from Ben Coad who gave away 22 runs, Hill ending unbeaten on 24 from just nine balls.Yorkshire did not have their best night in the field as three catches were put down, the easiest being when Raine, who had just pulled Adil Rashid for two sixes, survived a simple chance to Liam Plunkett on the mid-wicket boundary.Things began encouragingly for Yorkshire as Tim Bresnan, in his first appearance of the season after being sidelined with a calf muscle tear, started with a wicket maiden, Pettini forcing his fifth ball straight into the hands of Rhodes at point.Bresnan’s new ball partner, James Wainman, also enjoyed an early success on his T20 Blast debut. In Wainman’s second over, Mark Cosgrove, who had struck 20 from 11 balls, was caught at deep square leg by Coad.Bresnan and Plunkett each claimed two wickets but Leicestershire kept battling away and their destructive hitting late on proved to be decisive.

Big Picture

Forget the controversy for a moment. Forget the charges faced by the Sri Lanka leadership, forget the video clips, and the due process. From a purely cricket perspective, this series deserves a close finish. It hasn’t quite been an epic, but aspects of it have been a wonderful surprise.How many series have two 145kph-plus quicks at the top of the series’ wicket-takers’ list? Shannon Gabriel and Lahiru Kumara have forced one opposition batsman to retire hurt apiece. The cricket has never been more interesting than when either man is hurling deliveries at ribs and throats. On this tour both players may have had breakthrough performances. For years West Indies and Sri Lanka have searched for quick strike bowlers worthy of the title.At different times, both teams have made major gambles. Jason Holder declared at 414 for 8 on a Trinidad track that was not especially helpful to bowlers. In St. Lucia, Sri Lanka made four changes to their XI and might have won had rain and their own refusal to take the field on day three not sapped precious hours from the game. Various batsmen have shone at various points – Shane Dowrich, Kusal Mendis, Kraigg Brathwaite, Dinesh Chandimal, all playing different types of innings, all utterly committed to the team cause.The teams now move to the first-ever day-night Test in the region, played at one of the Caribbean’s most iconic venues. West Indies have not won a day-night Test in two attempts, losing to Pakistan in Dubai and England at Edgbaston. Sri Lanka have won their only day-night Test so far, last year in the UAE. These are small sample sizes, but one phenomenon that has been observed across the nine day-night Tests played so far is that the evening session tends to be especially fruitful for fast bowlers. Given the prominence of quicks so far, that is a tantalising prospect.Sri Lanka will quite likely miss the experience of Rangana Herath in this Test, however. He has been ruled out with a split webbing in his hand, sustained during fielding drills in the approach to this game.

Form guide

Sri Lanka DLWDD (completed matches, most recent first)
West Indies DWLLDCWI Media

In the spotlight

Almost every time Shannon Gabriel came to the bowling crease in the second Test, the game seemed to change. Sri Lanka batsmen who had been cruising, suddenly had the ball seeking out the edges and shoulders of their bats. They found themselves struggling to contend with Gabriel’s pace. More than anything, they had to contend with balls leaping menacingly at them, Dhananjaya de Silva copping a painful blow to the wrist in the second innnings. In the end, his 13 for 121 in St. Lucia were the best figures ever in the Caribbean. If Sri Lanka can tear themselves away from other distractions to plan for this Test, it is Gabriel who will come up most in team discussions.The dropping of Kusal Mendis for the tour of India last year now seems like an outstanding call from the national selectors. Since he has returned, he has not only rediscovered limited-overs form, but has scored heavily in Tests as well. With 238 runs and an average of 59.50, he is the leading run-scorer in the series so far, and it was his second-innings 87 around which Sri Lanka built their first commendable batting effort on tour. His average took a bit of a beating in 2017, but it is on a forward march again, currently sitting at 39.00. Many feel he has the talent to be a 45-plus player.

Team news

West Indies may draft 20-year-old quick Keemo Paul into the XI in place of Miguel Cummins, who has gone wicketless in three of the four innings he has bowled in in the series. Apart from that change, they are likely to keep the same side. Holder said everyone was fit for the Test.West Indies (possible): 1 Kraigg Brathwaite, 2 Devon Smith, 3 Kieran Powell, 4 Shai Hope, 5 Roston Chase, 6 Shane Dowrich (wk), 7 Jason Holder (capt), 8 Devendra Bishoo, 9 Keemo Paul, 10 Kemar Roach, 11 Shannon GabrielWith Chandimal out of the Test, it is difficult to predict the exact make-up of the Sri Lanka side. Suranga Lakmal is going to lead the, SLC confirmed on Saturday. Danushka Gunathilaka may replace the misfiring Kusal Perera at the top of the order, but it is possible that Perera merely moves down the order.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Danushka Gunathilaka, 2 Mahela Udawatte, 3 Dhananjaya de Silva, 4 Kusal Mendis, 5 Roshen Silva, 6 Kusal Perera, 7 Niroshan Dickwella (wk), 8 Suranga Lakmal (capt.), 9 Akila Dananjaya, 10 Kasun Rajitha, 11 Lahiru Kumara

Pitch and conditions

The weather in Barbados is expected to be cloudy but dry for the majority of the Test. Pitches at the Kensington Oval have recently favoured seam bowlers.

Stats and trivia

• Mendis’ scores in the series are 4, 102, 45 and 87. He averages 72.71 across four Tests this year.
• Gabriel’s bowling average has also been on an improve since the start of 2017. In that period he has 51 wickets at an average of 23.49. His average before that period was 38.12.
• West Indies have won the two most-recent Tests at Kensington Oval, beating Pakistan and England.

Big PictureLet’s cool things down a little. Two high-profile, highly-charged matches have happened. Some hands have not found the company of other hands at times around cricket matches where hands and other hands are supposed to find the company of hands.We are not naming names, or specifying political indiscretions. But at least on Tuesday, there should be some peace. Perhaps even some love.Pakistan vs Sri Lanka tends to be borderline sappy.Related

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Both these teams also have some pride to resurrect. The reasons for Pakistan’s self-esteem doldrums are obvious. If Sri Lanka was Pakistan’s roommate in a sitcom right now, they’d be telling Pakistan to get their act together with an arm around their shoulders with insults dressed winkingly as compliments. Pakistan might point out that Sri Lanka aren’t doing so hot themselves, having lost to Bangladesh in the first Super Four match. Sri Lanka might respond by asking Pakistan to count the number of Asia Cup trophies on their cabinet. (Because this preview is written by a Sri Lankan, Sri Lankans get last word in all arguments.)Sri Lanka and Pakistan have not tested themselves against each other in T20Is for a while. The last time they played was in 2022, when in the 2010s they used to almost ritualistically have full tours every year.On the surface, they seem evenly matched, however. Pakistan have batting firepower issues. Sri Lanka have batting firepower issues. Pakistan are ranked seventh. Sri Lanka are ranked eighth. Both teams are attempting revivals. Sri Lanka believe theirs has really started. A win against Pakistan will help affirm it.Form guideSri Lanka: LWWWLPakistan: LWLWWIn the spotlightHaris Rauf has only played two T20Is against Sri Lanka, but has five wickets, and an economy rate of 6.85 against them. He was also Pakistan’s best quick in the last match against India, taking 2 for 26. Sri Lanka tend to back themselves against left-arm seam, with so many left-handers in the top order. But in the last match, they did lose three wickets to Mustafizur Rahman.Nuwan Thushara has become known for his outswing at the top of the innings, which has yielded him valuable powerplay wickets. In the last match however, Bangladesh’s Saif Hassan countered Thushara by running down the track and bludgeoning him straight. Thushara is a reasonably experienced bowler now. Can he bounce back?Pitch and conditionsAbu Dhabi tends to be one of the higher-scoring venues in the UAE. Although slower bowlers can sometimes prosper there. Sri Lanka won both matches here in the group stage.Team newsAlthough licking their wounds after the loss to India, Pakistan may keep the same XI.Pakiistan (possible): 1 Sahibzada Farhan, 2 Fakhar Zaman, 3 Saim Ayub, 4 Hussain Talat, 5 Mohammad Nawaz, 6 Salman Agha (capt.), 7 Faheem Ashraf, 8 Mohammad Haris, 9 Shaheen Afridi, 10 Haris Rauf, 11 Abrar AhmedSri Lanka are seriously considering adding a bowler. Maheesh Theekshana may come back into the XI.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 Kusal Mendis (wk), 3 Kamil Mishara, 4 Kusal Perera, 5 Charith Asalanka (capt.), 6 Kamindu Mendis, 7 Dasun Shanaka, 8 Wanindu Hasaranga, 9 Dushmantha Chameera, 10 Maheesh Theekshana, 11 Nuwan ThusharaSri Lanka have won both their matches in Abu Dhabi so far•Getty Images

Stats and trivia

• Sri Lanka have won all five most-recent T20Is against Pakistan, a streak going back to October 2019.
• In the UAE, however, Pakistan have won four T20Is against Sri Lanka, out of seven encounters.
• Openers Pathum Nissanka and Sahibzada Farhan are the tournament’s No. 2 and No. 3 runscorers so far, behind india opener Abhishek Sharma. Sri Lanka’s other opener, Kusal Mendis, is fifth on that list.Quotes“We tend to have four ‘proper bowlers’ and then Dasun Shanaka, Kamindu Mendis, and me, have to make up the other overs. But this is T20, and even our best bowlers sometimes go for 40 or 45. If we had another bowler, it would help. But we’re still deciding how to go forward.”Sri Lanka captain Charith Asalanka doesn’t have a fixed plan just yet

Tony de Zorzi, South Africa’s opening batter who was dismissed for 78 before lunch, sat on the change-room balcony with a copy of Aldous Huxley’s . Ironic, because what played out in front of him was nothing like the novel’s dystopian reality. Instead, it was as his coach Shukri Conrad predicted: same, old Test cricket. “Traditional” was the word South Africa’s red-ball coach used to describe what he expected would be attritional cricket in Trinidad, and that is what the teams produced.All but one South African batter, Aiden Markram, got starts. Two, de Zorzi and captain Temba Bavuma, made half-centuries, and there were four 50-plus partnerships, but there were no hundreds. Only one frontline West Indies bowler, left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie, conceded at more than 3.5 runs per over and the seamers shared five wickets between them. They were disciplined most of the time and threatening for some of it, but did not consistently trouble the batters. All these things could have a lot to do with the kind of surface this Test is being played on: docile, fairly dry, and lacking in life in the form of bounce or pace. It was the kind of surface that requires patience, not flair, and rewards those who are willing to grind.Related

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That was evident from the first exchanges when West Indies’ senior seamers Kemar Roach and Jason Holder relied on good lengths to keep South Africa quiet and were punished as soon as they strayed. In the third over of the day, Holder dropped it a fraction short and de Zorzi scored the first boundary when he dabbed it behind point. In the next over, Roach was a touch too full and Tristan Stubbs drove his first and last balls through the covers with confidence.South Africa’s second-wicket pair were beaten on occasion but were mostly fairly comfortable early on. De Zorzi reached his second Test fifty off 78 balls. Importantly for de Zorzi, it is also his first success in his first attempt at opening in Tests. Stubbs did not quite have the same results at No. 3 and failed to use his feet when Roach angled a length ball in from wide of the crease. With the slip cordon up, Stubbs edged behind and Holder dived across from second slip to take the catch low down.Jomel Warrican had Keshav Maharaj caught and bowled•AFP/Getty Images

Roach was pumped and greeted a leaden-footed Bavuma with a delivery that almost kissed the bat before beating the outside edge. He kept Bavuma in the crease throughout that over but the South African captain was happy to bide his time. Bavuma took ten balls to get his first runs but when he did, he got them with confidence. He stepped down the pitch and hit Motie over his head for two runs to bring up 3000 runs in Test cricket.While Bavuma’s approach remained watchful – understandable given this was his first Test innings since March 2023 – any aggression came from de Zorzi. He was proactive in turning an intended drive off Jayden Seales into a slice over point and reverse-swept Motie to get to 70. With a top score of 85, also scored against West Indies, de Zorzi would have been eyeing a first century but he undid himself with a second reverse sweep off Jomel Warrican and gloved it to Kavem Hodge at slip, 12 minutes before lunch.After the break, Bavuma again dropped anchor and allowed his partner, David Bedingham, to take the fight to West Indies. Following on from his five centuries in eight matches in the County Championship, Bedingham showed his class when he double-stepped down the track to club Warrican over long-on and then waited for a Seales delivery to late-cut it for four.That urgency rubbed off on Bavuma, who scored his first boundary in 48 balls when he advanced down to hit Warrican for four. But he quickly went back into his shell when a pull off Seales was almost caught by Hodge at square leg. Instead, it was Bedingham who fell to the pull. He couldn’t keep Seales down and sent him to deep square leg, where Keacy Carty, on debut, took the catch diving forward to give Seales his first Test wicket at his home ground.Kyle Verreynne got hit by a beamer•AFP/Getty Images

Ryan Rickelton started convincingly with a sublime cover drive and then watched as Bavuma reached his 21st Test fifty off 123 balls. Rickelton lived dangerously and hit a full toss from Warrican straight back to him but the left-arm spinner could not hold on. Luckily for West Indies, the drop did not prove too costly. Rickelton added 11 runs to his score and then succumbed to the second new ball: lbw to Roach.Bavuma was on 80 at that stage and still had one recognised batter, Kyle Verreynne, to accompany him in pursuit of a century. Verreynne faced the first 20 balls of their partnership, including a beamer from Seales that hit him on the left glove, but did not seem to do any damage. Bavuma then survived a West Indies review for lbw off Holder, which was too high on umpire’s call. But two-and-a-half overs later, Seales bowled a full toss and Bavuma’s concentration broke. He missed the flick, was hit at shin height and given out. Verreynne convinced him to review but only in hope. He had to leave, without a first Test century away from home, a second against West Indies and a third in his career.South Africa were 271 for 6 and West Indies had the opportunity to run through their lower order. They conceded only 20 runs in 12 overs to frustrate the naturally aggressive Verreynne and Wiaan Mulder, but the pair held firm and as West Indies tired, they cashed in. But just as they started to pull away, Warrican struck twice in two balls. Verreynne offered him a simple redemptive return catch that he held onto and then Keshav Maharaj chipped one back to him that required a dive to take with both hands but Warrican did that too and suddenly South Africa were in danger of a sub-350 score.Mulder and Kagiso Rabada took them to the brink of that and they will be eyeing slightly more on the third day.