Jason Holder's defiant 81 not out helped West Indies recover from an early collapse against South Africa, but the tourists still trail by 73 after day two of the second Test.
The former captain arrived at the crease with his side at 116-6, after a Proteas attack led by Gerald Coetzee had torn through their top order at Wanderers Stadium.
With a diligently impressive performance however, the former number one all-rounder in the world dug his side out of dire straits for a final total of 251 all out in Johannesburg.
His efforts will have spared the blushes of Kraigg Brathwaite's men, though Temba Bavuma's side will still feel they have the advantage heading into the rest of the week.
West Indies had made the best possible start to the first session, dismissing South Africa for a final total of 320 after taking their remaining three wickets for the loss of just nine runs.
Any hope of mounting a steadfast pursuit though appeared to crumble quickly though, with the loss of openers Kraigg Brathwaite (17) and Tagenarine Chanderpaul (1) inside the first dozen overs.
Coetzee, who finished with figures of 3-41, subsequently removed Reifer and Blackwood in quick succession, reducing the visitors to 51-4.
Roston Chase (28) and Kyle Mayers (29) mustered a half-century partnership before they too were dismissed, leaving West Indies over 200 behind with just four wickets in hand.
South Africa likely had high hopes of finishing off the tail with little further effort, but they did not count on the stubborn resistance offered by Holder, who guided their fightback on the front foot.
A 58-run stand for the 10th wicket saw him drag West Indies within three figures of the Proteas, before Gudakesh Motie was caught off Simon Harmer for 17 to curtail their resistance.
Dean Elgar (3 not out) and Aiden Markram (1 not out) added four without loss for the hosts in the final three overs of the day, but at stumps, they could yet come to rue their inability to maintain their cushion.
Holder sets number eight record
Arriving as the late-breaking cavalry for his team, not only did the 31-year-old put his side firmly back in contention but he entered the history books too.
His score of 81 is the best by a batter at number eight in a Test at Wanderers Stadium, exceeding the 78 set by Mark Boucher for South Africa against Pakistan in 1998.
Coetzee justifies inclusion
Having only made his Test bow in the pair's first game last month, it was a less-than-auspicious debut for the 22-year-old, with three wickets across both innings.
Here, he matched that figure in less overs, though his ultimate average was hurt by West Indies' late resistance.
IPL: Titans broke records to move off the foot of the table
Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill wrote their names into the history books as the Gujarat Titans earned a 35-run victory over Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League on Friday to move eighth.
The pair contributed to a sensational 210 runs between them for the opening wicket – the joint-highest opening stand in IPL history – as the Titans set CSK a daunting target of 232.
Gill was the first to reach his century in the 17th over, plundering 104 off 55 balls, but Sudharsan followed shortly after, hitting 103 off 51 before Tushar Deshpande got both out within the next five balls.
The Titans only added a further 41 runs to finish with 231-3 but stifled CSK when they stepped up to bat.
The Super Kings were 10 for three down inside the first two overs before Daryl Mitchell (63) and Moeen Ali (56) got them into their stride.
Mohit Sharma ensured the Titans ended strongly, finishing with figures of 3-31 to limit CSK to 196-8, leaving them with a tough task to reach the play-offs as they remain in fourth.
Data Debrief: GT history makers
Sudharsan, whose knock included five fours and seven maximums, and Gill, who helped himself to nine fours and six maximums, both scored their first centuries in the IPL this season.
Along the way, Gill and Sudharsan pushed the IPL century count past 100.
Olympiacos 2-0 Aston Villa (6-2 agg): Villans fall in last four as El Kaabi strikes again
Olympiacos will face Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final after an Ayoub El Kaabi double secured a 6-2 aggregate win over Aston Villa.
After a stunning 4-2 win at Villa Park last weekend to take the ascendancy in the semi-final tie, first-leg hat-trick hero El Kaabi struck early before netting again late on to stamp out any hopes of a Villa comeback.
After a strong start from the visitors, El Kaabi scored his fourth goal of the tie just 10 minutes into Thursday's second leg at Stadio Georgios Karaiskaki, getting on the end of Quini's low cross to turn home at the far post.
It looked an uphill battle for Villa, who dominated the possession throughout the contest in Greece but struggled to make a dent in the stubborn hosts.
Douglas Luiz saw a long-range effort saved by Kostas Tzolakis while the Olympiacos goalkeeper also denied Moussa Diaby. El Kaabi made sure late on, getting on the end of a long ball to fire past Martinez and secure Olympiacos' final berth.
The fairytale comeback never materialised for Villa, and it will be Olympiacos who take on Fiorentina at the Agia Sophia Stadium in the Greek capital of Athens on May 29, looking to utilise familiar surroundings to claim their first major European trophy.
Data debrief
El Kaabi was the hero again for Olympiacos as his two second-leg finishes took him to 10 Europa Conference League goals for the campaign, more than any other player, while his 13 strikes in major European competitions are also more than any other player when factoring in his three Europa League goals.
Villa had 73.9 per cent of the ball in the second leg, yet their 1.14 xG (expected goals) was still inferior to Olympiacos' 1.23 as the Greek Super League side's ruthlessness clinched their spot in the final.
IPL: Kohli shines as RCB maintain winning run against Kings
Virat Kohli's superb knock of 92 helped Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a fourth straight win in the Indian Premier League on Thursday as they kept their playoff hopes alive with a 60-run triumph over Punjab Kings.
Kohli smashed seven fours and six sixes in his 47 balls faced as the Challengers set the Kings a daunting target of 241, with Rajat Patidar also bringing up his half-century and Cameron Green (46 off 27) falling just short of doing so.
The Kings pulled off the biggest run chase in IPL history less than two weeks ago, but their hopes of another comeback were dealt a huge blow when Faf du Plessis took a wonderful over-the-shoulder catch to send Jonny Bairstow packing with Punjab at 71-1.
Kohli's contribution wasn't only limited to the bat, as he produced a stunning run out of Shashank Singh, haring onto the scene to send wickets flying with an underarm throw as Shashank failed to make it back by mere inches.
It was then up to Mohammed Siraj to polish off the Punjab tail, finishing with figures of 3-43 as the Kings fell to back-to-back defeats, keeping them ninth in the standings.
Data Debrief: Kohli leads the way
Having previously claimed the honour in 2016, Kohli leads the way in the race for the 2024 Orange Cap, another impressive innings taking him to 634 runs for the campaign.
Averaging 70.44 with a strike rate of 153.51, Kohli put further distance between himself and Chennai Super Kings' Ruturaj Gaikwad, whose 541 runs put him second in the standings.
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