Bridgetown (Barbados), Mar 13: Marlon Samuels took a career-best haul of 4-13 and fellow off-spinner Shane Shillingford grabbed 3-58 as the West Indies bowled out Zimbabwe for 211 on day one of the first test on Tuesday.
However, the visitors hit back late in the day through fast bowler Kyle Jarvis (2-9), with the West Indies limping to 18-2 at the close at Kensington Oval.
Zimbabwe's modest first innings total was built around opener Tino Mawoyo's topscore of 50 but pacemam Kemar Roach (2-31) and Shillingford broke the back of the top order before Samuels polished off the innings.
Zimbabwe, batting after winning the toss, lost Vusi Sibanda (12) after half hour when Roach uprooted the right-hander's leg stump as he played across the line.
Mawoyo and Hamilton Masakadza shared a second wicket stand of 42 before Roach struck again in his first over of a second spell.
Masakadza, after compiling 17 in an hour, deflected to gully where Samuels made his first intervention of the day with an outstanding one-handed catch low to his left.
Zimbabwe passed 100 with just two wickets down just after lunch but the home team dominated in the next two sessions.
The 27-year-old Mawoyo, in his fifth Test, struck seven fours in an even fifty off 95 balls before he prodded a bat-pad catch to short leg off Shillingford.
Fast bowler Shannon Gabriel then produced a wicked outswinging yorker to pluck out the off stump of captain Brendan Taylor (26) as the Zimbabweans slipped further to 110-4. Taylor, who struck four fours, had added 41 with Mawoyo.
Shillingford soon added the scalp of Malcolm Waller, given out lbw after review even though he had seemed to get an under-edge to leg slip off his pad and that of the wicket-keeper as he swept.
Left-hander Craig Ervine batted enterprisingly for 29 before Samuels bowled him through the gate when he was introduced for the first time and Zimbabwe were stuttering at 162-6 at tea.
Regis Chakabva, badly dropped by Tino Best at mid-off off Shillingford before the break, found a useful ally in Graeme Cremer on resumption and the pair forged a seventh wicket stand of 38.
Cremer was the more enterprising, hitting three fours in 25 before he slashed to backward point off Samuels.
Chakabva followed at the same total, prodding Shillingford to Kiran Powell at short leg after defying for 15 off 92 deliveries..
Samuels quickly wrapped up the innings with Jarvis (0) snared by Powell at bat-pad and Tendai Chatara (2) caught at mid-off as he attacked.
Ray Price, who slammed a reverse sweep for four and a big six over midwicket, ended on 12 not out.
Jarvis quickly returned to undermine the West Indian reply.
Left-hander Powell played across an inswinger and was lbw in spite of his desperate review and nightwatchman Kemar Roach followed in similar fashion, the right-hander missing an outswinger to be plumb in front.
Chris Gayle, returning to the side after being rested for the limited overs series, was on 11 at the close with Darren Bravo yet to score.
