South Africa 301 (Markram 89, Bosch 81*, Shahzad 3-75, Naseem 3-92) and 150 for 8 (Bavuma 40, Abbas 6-54) beat Pakistan 211 (Ghulam 54, Paterson 5-61, Bosch 4-63) and 237 (Shakeel 84, Babar 50, Jansen 6-52) by two wickets
South Africa have qualified for the World Test Championship (WTC) final after beating Pakistan by two wickets in a high-drama encounter at SuperSport Park. Set a modest but challenging target of 148 to win, they were 99 for 8 just before lunch and it was left to Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen to score the remaining 51 runs in a tense ninth-wicket stand against a Pakistan attack with their tails up.
Mohammad Abbas, on a comeback from a three-year absence from the Test side, bowled a marathon 19.3 overs spell from the Hennops River End and took a career best 6 for 54 but could not end Pakistan's lean run in South Africa. This is the eighth successive Test they have lost in the country, dating back to 2007.
Pakistan gave themselves every chance by running through South Africa's middle order on a morning of mayhem, where South Africa lost 5 for 37, including four wickets for three runs in 12 balls, which put the onus on the bowlers to finish the job.
Jansen and Rabada are both capable with the bat but with the pressure turned up fully, every ball was an event, from the second one Rabada faced, that he hit up and over point for four, to the final one, steered delicately by Jansen through point to secure the winning runs.
Those strokes are also screenshots of the way the pair approached the chase: Rabada backed himself to play his strokes while Jansen was more conservative and happy to wait for scoring opportunities.
Between them, they offered only once chance, when Rabada, on 12, fished outside off and edged but the chance fell short of Mohammad Rizwan. That came post-lunch, the break South Africa went into needing 32 to win.
By the time Abbas found Rabada's edge, they needed 28. Rabada went on to score five boundaries in his 31, the third-highest score by a batter at No.10 or lower in a successful chase.
A normally nervous character, Jansen, who spoke about his game plan on the third evening, was solid in defence and then struck two of the sweetest fours of his career, first when he got on top of the bounce from Abbas and then to seal a famous win.
While Rabada and Jansen held their arms up in celebration on the field, South Africa's captain Temba Bavuma and coach Shukri Conrad embraced in the changeroom. The pair came together at the end of the last WTC cycle to lead South Africa through this one. Mission accomplished.
Bavuma would have also been a relieved man after he worked his way to 40 and then walked when he did not hit the ball. He was given out off what seemed to be the inside-edge and walked. Replays showed the ball had brushed a part of his clothing and, with all three reviews available, South Africa could have asked for a second opinion.
Instead, Bavuma, who had received treatment on his elbow shortly before that, left the middle order to finish the job.
This is the second time Bavuma has walked at SuperSport Park - in 2020 against Sri Lanka, he was on 71 when he thought he had under-edged Dasun Shanaka and left the field before the umpire had raised the finger. This time, Alex Wharf had given Bavuma out but he chose not to review to the surprise of the South African changeroom. His dismissal triggered the collapse that left the tail at the crease.
Kyle Verreynne could not get behind the line of a Naseem Shah delivery and chopped it onto his stumps. In the next over David Bedingham chased an Abbas ball and was caught behind, and Corbin Bosch did almost exactly the same thing to give Abbas his sixth wicket and South Africa had crumbled from a position that felt comfortable: 96 for 4 after teetering precariously on 27 for 3 overnight.
Bavuma got the first runs of the morning, and his first runs, off the fifth ball, off a Abbas half-volley that he clipped through square leg. Abbas adjusted to back of a length and in his next over, thought he had found Bavuma's edge. Rizwan indicated the ball had brushed Bavuma's thigh but Shah Masood reviewed anyway. Rizwan was proved right and Bavuma, on 5, could continue.
Aiden Markram looked slightly more in control but got a streaky boundary off the edge before Bavuma creamed Khurram Shahzad through mid-on to leave South Africa with 100 runs to get.
Off the next ball, Bavuma, on 13, was given out lbw to Shahzad but reviewed immediately. Replays showed an inside edge and Bavuma survived again.
South Africa scored just three runs off the next 27 balls before Bavuma released the pressure with a hook shot off Abbas that Naseem thought he could get under. Naseem got hands under the ball but the momentum carried him over the boundary rope and not only did Bavuma get away with the shot he has fallen to several times this season but he got six for it.
To add insult to injury, Markram smashed the second ball of Naseem's next over over extra cover for four. Fourteen dot balls followed before a Markram single took South Africa to the first drinks break with no damage done and 35 runs scored in the first hour.
Three balls after the interval, Markram was bowled by an Abbas delivery that kept low as he tried to jam his bat down and keep it out. That ended a 43-run fourth-wicket stand between Bavuma and Markram and brought Bedingham, who has a top score of 35 this summer, to the crease.
He started with a wristy flick for four before Bavuma reeled off an exquisite cover drive but the eye-catching shots were followed by risky ones.
Bavuma could not resist another hook, despite not being able to extend his elbow fully, but the chance fell safely. He went on to advance on Shahzad, brought back to replace Naseem, and hit over the covers but could never get comfortable.
Two balls later, Shahzad thought he found his outside edge but Rizwan saw it was pad and Masood listened. Bavuma faced eight more balls before he required treatment on his right elbow - the left was injured before this season - but continued. In the next over, he drove expansively and loosely against Abbas and walked but his team-mates had enough in the tank to guarantee South Africa's place at Lord's next year and take a 1-0 series lead. South Africa will play one more Test in this cycle, against Pakistan, at Newlands next week.
