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BLAST FROM THE PAST | Proteas collapse in dramatic fashion against Windies

Today in SA sport history: April 23

West Indies fast bowlers Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh after beating SA in the historic first Test in Bridgetown, Barbados, in 1992.
West Indies fast bowlers Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh after beating South Africa in the historic first Test in Bridgetown, Barbados, in 1992. (Shaun Botterill/Gallo Images)

1935 — Amateur golfer Bobby Locke, just 17 years old and the newly crowned national amateur champion, wins the South African Open at Parkview by three shots. He carded 296 over the four rounds to see off fellow amateur Jock Verwey, who was in his 40s. Third-placed C Hunter, the 1929 national amateur champion, was the top professional in the field on 302. This was the first time in 22 years that an amateur had won, the previous victory being Scotsman Jimmy Prentice, and it was the first time that amateurs took the top two positions. Of the top 10 golfers, six were amateur.

1978 — Gary Player becomes the 10th golfer on the PGA Tour to win three tournaments in a row, scoring birdies on two of the last three holes to claim the Houston Open by one shot with an 18-under-par 270 total. Player had won the Masters and the Tournament of Champions in the two preceding weeks, but the Houston win — his 21st in the US — was also the 42-year-old’s last victory on the PGA Tour.

1992 — South African cricket captain Kepler Wessels and Peter Kirsten return to the crease with South Africa on 122/2 and needing just 79 runs more for victory on the final day of the one-off Test against the mighty West Indies in Bridgetown. Wessels was on 74 and Kirsten 36, but then disaster struck as South Africa’s last eight wickets fell for 25 runs. Wessels was unable to add to his score while Kirsten went on to make 52. But the remaining seven batsmen contributed just eight runs between them — four of them were out for ducks — as they collapsed to 148 all out to lose by 52 runs. Curtly Ambrose finished with 6/34 and Courtney Walsh 4/31.

1998 — Lance Klusener takes 5/25 as the Proteas, chasing 115, thrash Pakistan by nine wickets at Newlands to win the final of the ODI triangular tournament that also featured Sri Lanka. Opener Gary Kirsten scored an unbeaten 52.

2001 — The Proteas, having already won the away Test series against the West Indies, lose the final five-dayer in Kingston by 130 runs. Resuming on 140/3 still needing 246 for victory, the visitors were all out for 255. Neil McKenzie, Herschelle Gibbs and Jacques Kallis made half-centuries.

2005 — AB de Villiers, resuming on 122, makes 178 as South Africa declare their first innings on 548/9 in the third Test against the West Indies in Bridgetown for a lead of 252.

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