2nd T20I: South Africa v West Indies at Johannesburg

A knowing smile, widening eyes, fidgety fingers. Those are just three of many ways to read someone's mood even if you don't know them at all. The other is by listening. Not to the things they say but the other sounds: low humming can reveal anxiety, a clicking tongue irritation and music can express just about anything. In the case of the West Indies team, it beats a ballad of bliss.

The tunes seeping from their team room, through the walls in the bowels of the Newlands members' stand where the media conference venue is nestled, were upbeat and catchy, toe-tapping, hip-swaying sounds. They told not of a team who had been outplayed just two days ago, for the third time in as many matches, but of optimism and enthusiasm for what's to come. And Darren Sammy confirmed that is exactly how they feel.

"We are generally a happy bunch of boys. We are moving forward. There's a new energy and a different calibre of players," Sammy, West Indies' T20 captain, said.

Gayle stuck to his guns afterwards too. "He picked on me first. He tried to knock my head off," he said. But there were other reasons too. "He is inexperienced but has got a lot of pace so I wanted to put him on the back foot. This is a learning process for him. He is very young but he is a strong individual and he will be a quality fast bowler for South Africa in the future."

The near future is where du Plessis' is directing his more immediate concerns and they centre on how to get Gayle out. "He is hesitant at the beginning of his innings so you can get him there," du Plessis said. And then, South Africa may be able to walk right through West Indies, according du Plessis. "Chris won the match on his own for them. If we did that I would be disappointed in our batting unit," du Plessis said