Spinner Simon Harmer made an impression on his Test debut as South Africa edged the opening day of the third match with West Indies at Newlands.
Preferred to Imran Tahir as the Proteas’ premier slow bowler for the final contest of the series, which the hosts lead 1-0, the 25-year-old returned figures of 3-67 from 25 overs.
Harmer made timely breakthroughs, ending half-century stands on two occasions when Devon Smith and Leon Johnson departed for 47 and 54 respectively, before collecting the prized wicket of Shivnarine Chanderpaul.
South Africa ran into some stern resistance in the evening session, though, with skipper Denesh Ramdin contributing 53 to an alliance of 94 with the recalled Jermaine Blackwood, who was unbeaten with 43 of West Indies’ 276 for six at the close.
Having won the toss, West Indies lost their first batsman in the 14th over when Kraigg Brathwaite, a centurion in the previous match, loosely drove Dale Steyn to gully.
Smith and Johnson looked comfortable at the crease but, after making starts, the pair failed to go on as Harmer, thrown the ball after 21 overs, struck in his third set of six.
The off-spinner bowled Smith, cramped for room while attempting to cut on the back foot, with the final ball before lunch and then trapped Johnson lbw after the resumption.
Marlon Samuels, another batsman to lose patience, departed for 43 when he clubbed Stiaan van Zyl’s first ball straight to cover to hand the medium-pacer a first format scalp.
And when Chanderpaul was stumped after losing his balance attempting a flick into the leg side off Harmer, West Indies were in trouble at 172 for five.
But Ramdin and Blackwood showed the kind of fight that has been missing from the middle order in this rubber to frustrate South Africa in a 29-over stay at the crease.
The former struck six fours in his 103-ball knock until Steyn, who had earlier inexplicably sent down a wild delivery that raced away for four wides, accepted a return catch five overs before the close.
The breakthrough, the paceman's 391st in Tests, moved him ahead of Makhaya Ntini in his country’s all-time wicket list, 30 behind Shaun Pollock.