South Africa vs West Indies, 1st Test Winners and Losers

South Africa completed and emphatic innings and 220-run victory over the West Indies on day four of the first Test. It was the kind of result that was expected from the Proteas. Despite a slow and steady start, once they hit their straps, the hosts were completely dominant. The Windies batsmen got a few starts, but nobody made it count.

Vernon Philander’s tight lines, Dale Steyn’s aggression and support from Morne Morkel and Kyle Abbott was enough to help the Proteas take a 1-0 win in the series. Although the Windies batsmen weren’t entirely useless, the gulf between the two sides is so massive that one fears for what might come in the next few matches. There were plenty of talking points, though, and here are some winners and losers from the first match.

All quotes were obtained firsthand.

Winner: South Africa’s Youngsters and Russell Domingo

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At the start of the first Test, Russell Domingo was asked why Temba Bavuma was not released back to his franchise to play domestic cricket. His answer was simple. South Africa wanted to pick a dedicated 12th man who had some sort of experience of high-level cricket, just in case there was an important catch to be taken by a sub fielder.

“If we drop an important chance by having an amateur on the field, then the media will be all over us,” Domingo said.

He was proven right with Bavuma taking two sharp catches in the second innings as injuries mounted for South Africa. Bavuma is a young player with a bright future ahead and his opportunity might come sooner than he expects, but more on that later.

Another youngster who won was Stiaan van Zyl. He’s had to wait quite some time to make his debut, but he made hit count by becoming the first South African batsman to score a hundred on debut on home soil. Although it was “only” the Windies, Van Zyl certainly has a long future ahead of him.

Winner: Test Cricket, According to Dale Steyn

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By the end of the recently concluded one-day series against Australia, Dale Steyn admitted that he was getting a bit sick of playing the format. At the end of the fourth day, when he had taken his 25th five-for in the format, his eyes were glistening with excitement at the prospect of playing in whites.  When asked how happy he was to be playing Tests, he said: “So happy, I wish I could swear.”

Steyn has said time and time again that he loves bowling in the longest format of the game and although he had to wait until the fourth day to get his first wicket of the match, it was worth it.

The crowd at Centurion, too, was impressive under the circumstances. Considering that most people have left for holidays by the seaside and the match was likely to be over quickly on day four, a sizable crowd had turned up. In fact, for most of the days, there were a fair amount of people at the ground. It was by no means packed, but there were enough people for a good atmosphere. With so much focus on the lack of crowds at Tests,  the people of Johannesburg and Pretoria can give themselves a pat on the back for the way they supported their team.

Loser: Kemar Roach

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Kemar Roach looked to be the West Indies' best bowler, but he might not play again now. He picked up an ankle injury and has pain when putting weight on his foot. Windies management confirmed that he has been ruled out of the second Test and a call will be made in the next few days to decide whether he will remain with the team or be replaced.

Roach is having one of his best years in cricket to date. He's played just six Tests, but he has taken 28 wickets and his average for the year, 20.71, is the lowest ever for him in a calendar year. His injury is a great loss, not just for the team, but also for a player who is now coming into his own.

Loser: The Windies’ Prospects in This Series

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Marlon Samuels and Shivnarine Chanderpaul are, without a doubt, the two key batsmen in the Windies team. Neither of them looked particularly convincing against South Africa’s bowling attack. While they have won in PE before, the West Indies will need a miracle if they want to bounce back in this series. PE will offer them more “Caribbean-like” conditions, but with South Africa’s players  in the kind of form they are in and now returning to “Test-match fitness,” they might have a tough time.

Winner and Loser: Injuries and Opportunities

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South Africa looked like the walking wounded at one stage during the first Test. Faf du Plessis had abdominal pain and was taken to hospital for tests while Quinton de Kock injured his ankle in the warm-ups. Du Plessis has recovered, but De Kock has been ruled out for the remainder of the series and could even miss the World Cup. While it’s horrible for De Kock, it could be good news for some of South Africa’s youngsters. Cricket South Africa will name a replacement for De Kock before the start of the second Test, but they might not need  to look too far.

Temba Bavuma could make his debut in Port Elizabeth, thereby offering yet another young player the chance to make a name for himself. The other option is to bring back Robin Peterson, but that might very well depend on the  fitness of Dane Piedt. PE does turn slightly more and if Piedt manages to recover from his injury, he could return to the side in place of Robin Pieterson.

For the Windies, too, Shannon Gabriel is likely to get an opportunity in place of the injured Kemar Roach. He's played just nine Test matches for the Windies and has showed some promise in the longest format of the game.