BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC) – Captain Darren Sammy’s whirlwind half-century spared West Indies blushes before off-spinner Shane Shillingford struck twice late in the day to give the hosts a stranglehold on the second Test against Zimbabwe on Wednesday.

Tottering on the brink of collapse at 151 for six just after lunch, West Indies rallied to 307 all out, courtesy of a stroke-filled top score of 73 from Sammy.

He slammed eight fours and four sixes off a mere 69 balls in an exhilarating innings.

Sammy shared a crucial 106-run stand for the seventh wicket with wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin who weighed in with an important 62 on his 28th birthday.

Zimbabwe, trailing West Indies by 96 runs, reached 41 for three at the close on the second day of the first Test.

Scores:

ZIMBABWE: 211 (Tino Mawoyo 50, Craig Ervine 29, Brendan Taylor 26; Marlon Samuels 4-13, Shane Shillingford 3-58, Kemar Roach 2-31) and 41 for three (Shane Shillingford 2-9)

WEST INDIES: 307 (Darren Sammy 73, Denesh Ramdin 62, Marlon Samuels 51, Chris Gayle 40, Shiv Chanderpaul 26, Tino Best 24; Kyle Jarvis 5-54, Hamilton Masakadza 2-25, Tendai Chatara 2-66)