South Africa vs Sri Lanka: Proteas win second Test to boost WTC final hopes
South Africa moved one step closer to the World Test Championship final as they beat Sri Lanka by 109 runs at Gokbehar.
On day five in the Eastern Cape, the Proteas needed just 14.1 overs to take Sri Lanka’s remaining five wickets and win the series 2-0 to leapfrog Australia into the top spot. World Trade Center table., external
Temba Bavuma’s side will be guaranteed a place in the main finals in June if they win both Tests in the two-match series against Pakistan starting on Boxing Day.
Sri Lanka started at 205 for 5 and needed another 143 runs to win at St George’s Park, with Dhananjaya de Silva and Kusal Mendis continuing their 83-run advantage on day four.
However, left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj broke the partnership in the fourth over of the day, with Mendis slipping slightly.
Kagiso Rabada then left Dhananjaya 14 balls behind and the visitors soon collapsed to 238 all out – 19 runs off the last five wickets.
Maharaj took three wickets on the fifth morning to take his 11th five-wicket haul in Tests.
Kyle Verreyne and Ryan Rickelton scored centuries to help South Africa to victory, while 35-year-old seamer Dane Paterson Five runs for the first time in the Test gave South Africa a slim first-innings lead.
Bavuma and Aiden Markram then struck half-centuries in the hosts’ second innings to set a challenging target of 348 that ultimately proved beyond Sri Lanka.
