CAPE TOWN: Chris Gayle blasted 77 off 31 balls as the West Indies beat South Africa by four wickets in the first Twenty20 international at Newlands here on Friday (partly reported in Saturday’s edition).

The big left-hander thrashed eight sixes and five fours in a brutal assault on the South African bowlers. His innings included an extraordinary sequence during which he hit 52 runs off 11 balls — five sixes, five fours and a two.

After making only one run off the first six balls he faced, he reached his half-century off 17 balls.

Only India’s Yuvraj Singh, who reached his half-century off 12 balls against England in Durban during the 2007 World Twenty20, has reached 50 off fewer deliveries.

“It’s a captain’s nightmare,” admitted South African skipper Faf du Plessis. “I thought we posted a really good total.”

West Indian captain Darren Sammy said the victory helped heal some of the wounds caused by South Africa’s comfortable 2-0 win in the preceding three-match Test series.

“We were determined to make up for the Test series,” said Sammy of Friday’s winning team which featured only four of the Test side.

Despite Gayle’s assault, there were only four balls to spare when the West Indies completed their win by passing their target of 166.

Leg-spinner Imran Tahir led the South African fightback, taking three for 28 in four overs, including the wicket of Gayle, who gloved an attempted reverse sweep to wicket-keeper Morne van Wyk.

Gayle was second man out with the total on 114 off the last ball of the 11th over.

At that stage it looked as though the tourists would romp to victory. But four more wickets fell before Kieron Pollard pulled David Wiese to the midwicket boundary off the second ball of the last over.

Earlier on Friday, Rilee Rossouw anchored South Africa’s total of 165 for four with an unbeaten 51, made off 40 balls with five fours.

Scoreboard

SOUTH AFRICA:

R. Hendricks lbw b Cottrell12

M. van Wyk c Gayle b Holder17

F. du Plessis c Sammy b Russell38

R. Rossouw not out51

D. Miller c Bravo b Cottrell24

F. Behardien not out18

EXTRAS (LB-2, W-3)5

TOTAL (for four wkts, 20 overs)165

DID NOT BAT: D. Wiese, W. Parnell,

K. Abbott, K. Rabada, Imran Tahir.

FALL FO WKTS: 1-30, 2-33, 3-79, 4-127.

BOWLING: Cottrell 4-0-33-2 (2w); Holder

4-0-20-1; Russell 4-0-43-1 (1w); Nurse 3-0-24-0; Bravo 3-0-26-0; Sammy 2-0-17-0.

WEST INDIES:

D. Smith lbw b Imran Tahir20

C. Gayle c Van Wyk b Imran Tahir77

M. Samuels c Rossouw b Imran Tahir41

D. Bravo c Hendricks b Parnell8

K. Pollard not out8

A. Russell c Abbott b Parnell6

D. Ramdin c Abbott b Wiese2

D. Sammy not out0

EXTRAS (B-4, LB-1, W-1)6

TOTAL (for six wkts, 19.2 overs)168

DID NOT BAT: J. Holder, A. Nurse, S. Cottrell.

FALL OF WKTS: 1-78, 2-114, 3-147, 4-154, 5-161, 6-164.

BOWLING: Abbott 4-0-30-0; Rabada 4-0-38-0; Wiese 2.2-0-20-1; Parnell 4-0-39-2; Imran Tahir 4-0-28-3 (1w); Behardien 1-0-8-0.

RESULT: West Indies won by four wickets.

MAN-OF-THE-MATCH: Chris Gayle

(West Indies)

SERIES: West Indies lead the three-match series 1-0.

UMPIRES: Johan Cloete and Shaun George (both South Africa)

TV UMPIRE: Adrian Holdstock (South Africa)

MATCH REFEREE: Ranjan Madugalle (Sri Lanka).

Published in Dawn January 11th , 2014

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