Gayle leads from the front in Cape Town

Chris Gayle blasted the ninth fastest test century as West Indies made a spirited reply to South Africa's imposing first innings…

Chris Gayle blasted the ninth fastest test century as West Indies made a spirited reply to South Africa's imposing first innings total on the second day of the third test in Cape Town today.

At the close, West Indies were 178 for one in reply to South Africa's 532, with Gayle undefeated on 112 and Ramnaresh Sarwan 39 not out.

Gayle reached his century off just 79 balls, crashing 19 fours and a six as he raced to three figures and also past 2,000 runs in tests.

His achievement was all the more extraordinary in that he was still recovering from a torn hamstring that almost kept him out of the match.