Holder rescues Windies as Proteas throw away big lead

Jason Holder rescued the West Indies with a brilliant unbeaten 81 to massively limit the damage as the Proteas ended the second day of the second Test at the Wanderers on 4/0 in their second innings, for an overall lead of 73-runs.

Holder guided the tail in two vital partnerships, as the final two wickets cost the Proteas 89-runs, after they had been all set to take a big lead into their second innings.

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The Proteas reduced the Windies to 116/6 and then 162/8, only for Holder to share in a 31-run stand for the ninth wicket with Kemar Roach, and then 58 for the last wicket with Gudakesh Motie (17), with them eventually all out for 251.

It meant that instead of a well over hundred run lead, the Proteas took a 69-run lead into their second innings, before they safely reached the close with Dean Elgar (3no) and Aiden Markram (1no) unbeaten at the crease.

In the morning the Proteas lost their last three wickets for the addition of just nine runs as they crashed to 320 all out in their first innings.

The Windies innings then got off to a dreadful start when captain Kraigg Brathwaite (17) called Tagenarine Chanderpaul (1) through for a quick single, with him hesitating, allowing Proteas skipper Temba Bavuma to swoop on the ball and nail a direct hit to send the batter on his way.

Kagiso Rabada had Brathwaite fending to Dean Elgar at slip, before Gerald Coetzee had Jermaine Blackwood (6) edging to keeper Heinrich Klaasen and Raymon Reifer (17) smartly caught by Tony de Zorzi at short leg, as the Windies tumbled to 51/4.

They reached the lunch break on 73/4 with Roston Chase (28) and Kyle Mayers (29) resuming in the afternoon session, extending their fifth wicket stand to 52 runs.

Chase then fell to an unfortunate dismissal as he edged a delivery from Wiaan Mulder onto his pads, with the ball then dribbling onto the stumps and knocking off a bail, while Mayers followed soon after as he wafted at a wide Rabada ball and edged it to Elgar as they slipped to 116/6.

Joshua da Silva (26) was then joined by Holder and they combined for a 41-run seventh wicket stand.

Another quick two wickets then saw the spinners get into the match as Simon Harmer bowled Da Silva through the gate, and Keshav Maharaj had Alzarri Joseph (4) blocking straight to De Zorzi at silly point with the Windies on 162/8, before Holder took centre stage.