Share

Gayle storms to half-century

North Sound - Chris Gayle marked his return to five-day cricket by hitting a half-century on Thursday as West Indies boldly replied to New Zealand's 351 all out to close on 145 without loss on day two of the opening Test here.

Gayle, who was playing his first Test for more than 18 months due to his stand-off with the West Indies Cricket Board following comments he made about officials in a radio interview, finished on 85 not out.

The 32-year-old hit four successive boundaries off the first over from Chris Martin and added another six in reaching his 34th Test fifty.

Kieran Powell was unbeaten on 58, making his third Test fifty. The 22-year-old's runs came off 164 balls and included 10 fours.

New Zealand were only able to add 119 runs to their overnight tally of 232 for four before being dismissed in the afternoon session.

It would have been even worse for the tourists but for a counter-attacking 39 off 31 by number 10 Doug Bracewell, who put on 42 for the final wicket with Martin.

Spinner Sunil Narine took his maiden five-wicket haul, finishing with five for 132 after adding two more wickets to his three scalps from day one.

The West Indies have dominated the tourists so far this summer, taking the Twenty20 series 2-0, in which Gayle was awarded man of the series, and the ODI series 4-1, in which Gayle made an aggressive century and half-century.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
How much would you be prepared to pay for a ticket to watch the Springboks play against the All Blacks at Ellis Park or Cape Town Stadium this year?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
R0 - R200
33% - 1816 votes
R200 - R500
32% - 1775 votes
R500 - R800
19% - 1083 votes
R800 - R1500
8% - 460 votes
R1500 - R2500
3% - 187 votes
I'd pay anything! It's the Boks v All Blacks!
5% - 253 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE