The last afternoon of this Third Test nearly brought the West Indies team to their collective knees. Whatever is done now, there must be some cool, calm assessment, honestly done, to understand the situation with the batting of this team, especially on the last day.

It is as if the West Indies only play for four days of the Test match, but it should be noted that a Test match still lasts five days. Maturity and ability wrapped in one is needed. Perhaps, Shivnarine Chanderpaul could be the answer here.

Serene at 59-1 in mid-afternoon, the West Indies middle order again shook, cracked and, as nearly as is possible without capitulating fully, just survived, as South Africa applied real pressure. The home team just averted going 2-0 down in the series. Had that happened, there would have been no coming back for the West Indies and it would have been, again, their batsmen who had let them down.

As quick as a flash, the West Indies disintegrated to 64-4 and then, from about 17 overs, to 82-7, as leg-spinner Nicky Boje, 4-17, and Jacques Kallis and Lance Klusener turned the screws. Even without Allan Donald, the South African attack is formidable and on the final evening all of the other bowlers took up the slack left by Donald's absence. As was the case in the Second Test in Trinidad & Tobago, the South African bowlers again showed great professionalism as they tried everything to dismiss the West Indians.

Chris Gayle, with 48, was the only batsman to get to double figures in the West Indies second innings. Then followed some gamesmanship, tremendous acting that should have earned them Oscars from Merv Dillon and Dinanath Ramnarine, antics that caused an immediate meeting between the ICC match referee Mike Denness and West Indian team officials. The West Indies play out the gloom to 88-7. It was a very distasteful display, but within the rules of the game, if not the spirit of the game.

Earlier, South Africa were themselves in trouble, at 97-6, an overall lead of only 164, as the West Indies spinners, Carl Hooper and Ramnarine, tried to restrict South Africa's lead to below 200.

Ramnarine bowled well, even if Hooper may have been using him just too much at times. Hooper himself seems keen to do as much bowling now as a fully fledged off-spinner, and not just spelling his fast bowlers, as was the case in the past. At least, Ramnarine did get his first five-wicket haul, 5-78 from 33.1 overs.

Had the West Indies caught better in this Third Test, they might have even won the game, but that could be said by the South Africans too.

Thanks again to Darryl Cullinan, with 82, and Shaun Pollock, with 40, South Africa escaped. Cullinan has now made a century and a half-century in successive Tests. This guy must like the Caribbean.

The final word must go to Ridley Jacobs, the now veteran wicket-keeper batsman, who scored his maiden Test century at the Kensington Oval. As the saying goes "Nothing happens before its time." Jacobs should have been playing for the West Indies long before his eventual advent in South Africa in 1998/9, and I mentioned that way back in 1996. Now he averages about 60+ against them, and there is so much more to come.

Psychologically, South Africa will be out front now, going to Antigua & Barbuda for Test No. 4. The West Indies have just two days to catch up. Things are getting tougher for the team in second position.

© CricInfo