Cape Town: In a thrilling contest, England have defeated South Africa by 189 runs in the second Test to level the series 1-1 here at Newlands on Tuesday.
Chasing 438 runs target, South Africa were bundled out for 248 runs. Ben Stokes emerged hero as the pacer finished the match with a three-wicket haul.
It is a result that has nothing to illustrate the drama of the day and the more significant statistic is that the hosts fell 50 balls short of saving the game.
England took five wickets in the final session to win despite courageous efforts with the bat from Pieter Malan (84), Rassie van der Dussen (17) and Quinton de Kock (50).
There was twists and turns throughout the day, with England starting as favourites and then the Proteas looking like they had done enough to rescue the draw. In the end, it was Ben Stokes (3/35) who has had the last laugh as he ripped through the South African lower order.
It was a perfect example of a five-day Test match, drifting slowly, with runs nowhere near the top of the list of priorities for either side.
By the end, England had deployed five slips to the seamers and almost everyone camped around the bat for the spinners in search of the final wicket.
The series is now tied at 1-1 with Tests in Port Elizabeth and Johannesburg to come.
