2nd Test: West Indies v South Africa at Port-of-Spain, 17-21 Mar 2001 CricInfo Live Report

2nd Test: West Indies v South Africa at Port-of-Spain, 17-21 Mar 2001
MWP

West Indies 1st innings: Lunch - day 3,
South Africa 1st innings: Day 3 - tea,
Live Reports from previous days

COURTNEY'S 500TH WICKET OVERSHADOWS SECOND TEST

Courtney Walsh extended both of his world records on an extraordinary afternoon that saw him record his 42nd duck before claiming two wickets in an over to reach the almost unimagineable figure of 500 Test dismissals as South Africa struggled to 43-2 in their second innings, still 13 runs behind the West Indies' total of 342.

The home side extended their first innings by a further 21 runs after lunch, all scored by wicket keeper Ridley Jacobs who manipulated the strike so effectively that Walsh was required to survive a mere five deliveries.

Jacobs has been stranded in the 90s before when Walsh was dismissed in Perth earlier this year with the muscular 'keeper on 96. Courtney was clearly desperate to give Jacobs another chance but his anxiety manifested itself in an attempt to run a non-existent single and Makhaya Ntini fielded off his own bowling, lobbed the ball to Shaun Pollock and the run out was a formality.

Jacobs' brilliant, unbeaten innings of 91, which increased in tempo and aggression as he ran out of partners, spanned 177 balls and contained 12 boundaries in three hours and 54 minutes.

Walsh's visible distress was short-lived, however, as he struck a double body blow to South Africa's fading hopes in the Test with the critical wickets of Gary Kirsten (22) and Jacques Kallis (0) in his seventh over when South Africa started their second innings with a deficit of 56.

Kirsten bottom edged a delivery which was brilliantly claimed by Jacobs on its way down and then Kallis was trapped in front of leg stump on the back foot to the second ball he received. Kallis was clearly incensed and implied strongly that his bat had been involved, but Walsh and an ecstatic crowd did not care.

Walsh was hugged several times by all of his teammates before saluting the crowd with a clenched fist and signing autographs on the third man boundary as the home side struggled to maintain concentration amidst all the emotion.

WEST INDIES TAIL FRUSTRATES SOUTH AFRICA

South Africa endured a morning of deep frustration at the start of the third day's play of the second Test against the West Indies as Ridley Jacobs (72*) steared the home side into a first innings lead of 35 runs, reaching lunch at 321-9 after losing just two wickets in the morning session.

Resuming on 250-7, South Africa struck immediately when Shaun Pollock bowled Dinanath Ramnarine with a straight delivery that passed between bat and pad to hit off stump.

But Jacobs batted superbly to keep the scoreboard moving with a series of muscular straight drives to the boundary while manipulating the strike to give Mervyn Dillon (21) as much protection as possible.

Jacobs, who began the morning on 26, reached his sixth Test half-century from 119 deliveries with seven boundaries while Dillon contributed a straight drive for four off Jacques Kallis in between long periods of determined, effective defence but grew hugely in confidence as the session drew to a close.

Perhaps it was over-confidence as Makhaya Ntini's belated introduction to the attack led to the second wicket when a delivery kept low and skidded through the batsman's defenced to clip off stump.

Courtney Walsh will have two deliveries to face from Ntini when play resumes after lunch with Jacobs having scored his third half-century against South Africa. His other three were all made against Australia. The greater the challenge, it seems, the greater his response.