leon Johnson and Marlon Samuels dug in to keep the West Indies in touch after AB de Villiers' century gave South Africa the initiative on day three of the third and final test at Newlands on Sunday.
Johnson and Samuels put on an unbroken 61 for the third wicket to rescue West Indies from the perilous position of 27-2 and leave it 88-2 at stumps, trailing South Africa by four runs. De Villiers' withering assault brought him 148 from 194 balls and gave South Africa a healthy first-innings lead as it was bowled out for 421. Morne Morkel and Simon Harmer then removed the West Indian openers in the first hour after the tea break, but Johnson made 37 not out and Samuels scored 26 to haul the tourists toward parity. However De Villiers motored on, and enjoyed a purple patch after lunch when he added 28 runs in 15 balls. Despite De Villiers' quick scoring, the West Indies were able to have a productive second session thanks to two run-outs and two wickets from Marlon Samuels. At 384-5 South Africa looked set for a huge total, but the offspinner trapped Stiaan van Zyl lbw for 33.
Brief Scores
West Indies: 329 and 88/2 (Johnson 37 not out; Morne Morkel 1/10) trail South Africa: 421 (De Villiers 148; Samuels 2/68) by 4 runs.