The West Indian top order will be under the microscope once again as South Africa secured a 1-0 series victory on day three of the second Test at the Providence Stadium in Guyana.
The South Africans started day three 223-5, leading the hosts by 239 runs with overnight batsmen Kyle Verreynne and Wiaan Mulder looking to add onto the lead.
Mulder failed to add to his overnight 34 while Verreynne added only nine to his overnight 50 as the West Indian bowlers were able to wrap up the innings in quick time on Saturday.
Jayden Seales was excellent with the ball on his way to a career-best 6-61 off 18.4 overs while left arm-spinners Jomel Warrican and Gudakesh Motie took two wickets, each.
Chasing a very manageable 263 with more than two days left in the game, the West Indian reply started badly as, for the second time in the game, the opening partnership failed to fire with Mikyle Louis falling for a 16-ball four in the fifth over.
Captain Kraigg Brathwaite and Keacy Carty tried to steady the ship, bringing the score up to 54 before Brathwaite went off the bowling of first innings hero Mulder for 25.
Only eight runs later, Carty was also back in the dressing room after being bowled by Mulder for 17.
It was then up to Alick Athanaze and Kavem Hodge to try and being the hosts as close as they could to the score, as they are the last two specialist batsmen in the line-up.
They brought the score up to 99 in the 31st over before Hodge fell for 29.
The wickets of Athanaze for 17 and Jason Holder for a duck not long after left the West Indies 104-6 with their chances of winning the series dwindling by the second.
A 77-run seventh wicket partnership between Joshua Da Silva and Gudakesh Motie gave the hosts a glimmer of hope before that hope was dashed in the 53rd over when Motie fell for a top-score of 45.
Da Silva fell soon after for 27, ending any legitimate chance of a successful West Indian chase.
Jomel Warrican and Shamar Joseph tried their best with 25* and 11, respectively, but the hosts were eventually bowled out for 222 in the 63rd over, losing by 40 runs.
Man of the series Keshav Maharaj took 3-37 off 11.2 overs while Kagiso Rabada took 3-50 from 16 overs.
Full Scores:
South Africa 160 off 54 overs (David Bedingham 28, Tristan Stubbs 26, Shamar Joseph 5-33, Jayden Seales 3-45) & 246 off 80.4 overs (Kyle Verreynne 59, Aiden Markram 51, Tony de Zorzi 39, Wiaan Mulder 34, Jayden Seales 6-61, Jomel Warrican 2-21, Gudakesh Motie 2-61)
West Indies 144 off 42.4 overs (Jason Holder 54*, Keacy Carty 26, Wiaan Mulder 4-18, Nandre Burger 3-49, Keshav Maharaj 2-8) & 222 off 66.2 overs (Gudakesh Motie 45, Kavem Hodge 29, Keshav Maharaj 3-37, Kagiso Rabada 3-50, Wiaan Mulder 2-35, Dane Piedt 2-50)
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Schmidt flummoxed by 'bizarre' Test as Australia downed by South Africa
Joe Schmidt said he cannot recall ever being involved in a more "bizarre" Test as his Australia side were downed 30-12 by South Africa in the Rugby Championship.
Malcolm Marx touched down twice for the Springboks in rainy Perth to make it two from two in the tournament but the Wallabies were hit by a swathe of injuries.
Front-row pair Allan Alaalatoa and Angus Bell were unable to return for the second half and scrums went uncontested after replacement prop James Slipper failed a head injury assessment.
The Wallabies even went down to 14 briefly when hooker Josh Nasser went off injured, though they did return to a full 15.
Reflecting on the unfortunate series of events, head coach Schmidt told Stan Sport: "It's probably one of the most bizarre games I've ever been involved in.
"In over 100 Test matches that I've been involved in I've never had a situation like that before. It happened so early in the game as well. When Slips got a head knock right after half-time.
"And then we were straight down. And then we played with 14 for a period of time before the officials worked out that we were still entitled to have a full pack because of the HIA.
"But I still am proud of the way that the guys fought their way through that second half. And the way that they stayed in the fight in the first half. It could have been, and I know it could have been as easy to say, but it could have been 12-11 at half-time and that would have been a massive lift for the boys."
Australia are winless through their first two matches, both against the Springboks, and will next face Argentina in La Plata on August 31.
Australia 12-30 South Africa: Springboks' late charge downs Wallabies
Malcolm Marx scored two tries in the second half to lead South Africa to a 30-12 victory over Australia in rainy Perth.
After a tight first half, the Springboks asserted their dominance to make it two wins from two in the Rugby Championship ahead of their meeting with New Zealand next week.
Noah Lolesio's penalty gave Australia the early lead, but they could not hold onto it for long as Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu equalised moments before Aphelele Fassi latched onto a long kick to touch down the first try.
Lolesio slotted in two more kicks only to miss another on the stroke of half-time that would have given the Wallabies the lead.
They were punished for it after the break as Marco van Staden and Malcolm Marx twice touched down to maintain South Africa's perfect start.
Though it was a marked improvement for the Wallabies from their opening-day performance in Brisbane, Joe Schmidt still has work to do to get them ready for Argentina next weekend.
Data Debrief: Springboks extend Australian run
South Africa have now won each of their last three Test matches against the Wallabies in Australia. The last time they recorded a longer such winning run was a four-match span from July 1971 to July 1993.
Though Australia have suffered back-to-back defeats, they showed more of a fight. Last week, it took them 75 minutes to score, compared to just three this time around.
Holder confident of West Indies revival in the face of Proteas advantage
Jason Holder remains confident that the West Indies can overcome South Africa's 239-run lead from the second day of the second Test in Guyana.
Holder, who hit an unbeaten 54 from 88 deliveries, watched on as the Proteas built a commanding advantage and were left 223-5 in their second innings.
Opener Aiden Markram (51) and Kyle Verreynne (50) starred for South Africa, with no repeat of the opening day carnage that saw 17 wickets fall for either side.
The Proteas were bowled out for 160 in their first innings, with Holder's half-century steadying the ship after the Windies had wobbled to just 97-7 in the 28th over.
With a 16-run advantage heading into the second innings, Markram and Tony de Zorzi put together a 79-run opening partnership before the latter was caught for 39.
The dismissal of Markram saw the visitors lose three wickets for 19 runs, but Verreynne and Wiaan Mulder (34 not out) were able to put together an 84-run sixth-wicket stand.
South Africa will resume with Verreynne and Mulder on day three, but Holder remains positive that his side can produce a comeback.
“I was just trying to eke out as many runs as we could,” said Holder at the end of the day. “First session tomorrow is obviously crucial for us.
"The most important thing is not to let the runs get too far away, let them sweat a little bit more for their runs, and I believe, with the amount of time left in the game, that we can chase anything they give us.”
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