Trinidad's unpredictable weather disrupted most of the opening day of the Test match between South Africa and the West Indies, allowing only 15 overs of play before rain halted proceedings. The match was called off just five minutes into the scheduled tea break, and play was set to resume half an hour earlier on the second day after a total of 75 overs were lost.
South Africa, having won the toss, chose to bat first with an extra batter in their lineup. Captain Temba Bavuma described the pitch as lacking any visible grass, indicating a lifeless surface. West Indies' Kemar Roach exploited the conditions effectively, delivering a challenging opening spell. His first ball angled into Aiden Markram, beating him on the back foot, and Roach's continued pressure resulted in figures of 5-3-6-0 by the end of his spell.
At the other end, Tony de Zorzi looked more at ease against Jayden Seales, timing the ball well to score a boundary. Seales' pace, in the mid-130kph range, offered little threat initially, prompting captain Kraigg Brathwaite to bring on Gudakesh Motie in the eighth over. De Zorzi capitalised on this change, hitting Motie for two boundaries and adding another four before Brathwaite switched to Jason Holder.
Markram, having struggled against Roach, faced Holder's first delivery in the same back-foot position, which seamed in and removed his off stump, dismissing him for 9. Markram’s recent first-innings scores have been in single figures, a trend he will aim to correct as the season progresses.
Tristan Stubbs, South Africa's new No. 3, came in to bat after Markram’s dismissal. He scored his first runs by tapping Holder to square leg and faced four more deliveries before rain interrupted play at 11:10 am local time. An early lunch was taken 40 minutes later as intermittent showers continued. By 2:00 pm, when a scheduled inspection was cancelled due to returning rain, the day was deemed unplayable.
The disruption is particularly frustrating for South Africa, who have not fielded their full-strength Test side since January and have a limited red-ball schedule. Following this Test, they have only seven matches remaining in the current World Test Championship cycle, with their series in the 2023-2025 period each being limited to two Tests.