South Africa beat West Indies to take a 1-0 lead in the 2-match Test series, which started last week. The Proteas completely dominated their opposition, winning the 1st Test by an innings and 63 runs. The 2nd Test will start on 18th June. Here are 3 reasons why South Africa won the 1st Test match against West Indies:
⦁ The West Indian batting lineup failed to deliver
West Indies performed poorly with the bat in the 1st innings of the Test match. In the 1st innings of the Test match, West Indies managed to amass only 97 runs in total. Roston Chase was the highest run-getter for West Indies in the 1st innings. Chase accounted for 62 out of 97 runs that West Indies scored in the 1st innings. Apart from Roston Chase, no other West Indian player managed to score more than 20 runs for West Indies in the 1st innings.
⦁ South African bowlers dominated with the ball
Anrich Nortje was the highest wicket-taker in the 1st Test between South Africa and West Indies. Nortje scalped an impressive 7 wickets in total at a superb bowling average of 11.57. Kagiso Rabada was also brilliant for South Africa in the 1st Test match against West Indies. Rabada scalped 6 wickets at a brilliant bowling average of 9.66. Lungi Ngidi also scalped 5 wickets in the 1st Test against West Indies.
⦁ The captaincy issue for West Indies
West Indies recently stripped Jason Holder from Test captaincy. Under the captaincy of Jason Holder, West Indies achieved a lot of success in the Test format. Hence, the unexpected removal of Holder from captaincy stirred quite a debate in the cricket fraternity. In Holder’s place, Kraigg Braithwaite has announced the captain of West Indies in the Test format. However, West Indies have performed poorly under the captaincy of Braithwaite in the Test format. West Indies will have to find a suitable skipper to help them find their lost form in the Test format.