South Africa’s dominance continued on day two of the second Test against West Indies in Guyana, as they extended their lead to 239 runs with five wickets remaining.
After dismissing West Indies for 144 in the first innings, South Africa openers Aiden Markram and Dean Elgar put on a solid 79-run partnership. Markram went on to score 51 before being dismissed by Alzarri Joseph, while Elgar fell for 35 to Jayden Seales.
Kyle Verreynne and Keegan Petersen then steadied the innings with a 45-run stand. Petersen was dismissed for 22 by Seales, but Verreynne continued to impress, reaching his half-century off 100 balls.
Wiaan Mulder joined Verreynne at the crease and the pair put on an unbeaten 84-run partnership to further strengthen South Africa’s position. Verreynne remained not out on 50, while Mulder was unbeaten on 44.
For West Indies, Seales was the pick of the bowlers with 3-52, while Motie took 2-61.
Earlier, West Indies had fought back in the first innings thanks to a defiant 54* from Jason Holder. The West Indies captain shared a 40-run partnership with Shamar Joseph for the last wicket, which helped them reduce the deficit to 16 runs.
However, South Africa’s bowlers, led by Lungi Ngidi (4-32) and Marco Jansen (3-49), proved too strong for the West Indies batting lineup.
With a substantial lead and five wickets in hand, South Africa are in a commanding position heading into day three. However, West Indies will be hoping to make early inroads with the ball and give themselves a chance of chasing down a challenging target.
