Cricket: Keshav Maharaj, Simon Harmer shine as South Africa end almost two-decade wait for victory in Pakistan
Proteas dominate second Test against Pakistan in Rawalpindi
After suffering a painful 93-run defeat in the first Test at the Gaddafi Stadium a week ago, South Africa bounced back in style to level the two-match series and confirm our cricket predictions with an eight-wicket victory against Pakistan on Thursday afternoon.
Pakistan elected to bat after winning the toss, and the Green Shirts got off to a solid start, with Abdullah Shafique and captain Shan Masood navigating the team to 146 runs in the 50th over after the early dismissal of opener Imam-ul-Haq.
The hosts were eventually bowled out for 333, with Keshav Maharaj starring for the world champions in the first innings, notching up a sensational 7/102 in 42.4 overs, while Simon Harmer claimed two scalps for 75 runs in 25 overs.
In their first innings, Aiden Markram’s side posted 404, with Tristan Stubbs scoring a patient 76 off 205 deliveries batting at number three. However, it was the lower order that shone for the Proteas, with Senuran Muthusamy and Kagiso Rabada scoring 89* and 71 off 61 balls, respectively.
It was in the second innings that the match firmly swung in the direction of the South Africans, as Harmer ripped through the Shaheen’s top order to finish with figures of 6/50, reducing the home team to 138 all out, leaving the Proteas needing just 67 runs for victory.
Noman Ali did his best to keep his side in the match by knocking over Markram and Tristan Stubbs, but the target proved far too low to defend, as the world champions wrapped up the match in 12 overs on Day 4.
2025-27 WTC points table after South Africa’s victory over Pakistan
After winning the first Test in Lahore, Pakistan moved up to second place in the 2025-27 World Test Championship standings, but the defeat in Rawalpindi has now knocked the Shaheens down three spots to fifth.
The victory was the first for South Africa in their title defence and took them above the Green Shirts into fourth, one behind India, who moved up to third place after dismantling the West Indies earlier this month.
Australia hold top spot with a perfect record of three wins in three, while the West Indies is the one team that has yet to earn a point after five matches. New Zealand are bottom of the standings, but have not played a match in the current cycle.
| Pos | Team | M | W | L | D | Pts | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 100.00 |
| 2 | Sri Lanka | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 16 | 66.67 |
| 3 | India | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 52 | 61.90 |
| 4 | South Africa | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 50.00 |
| 5 | Pakistan | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 50.00 |
| 6 | England | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 26 | 43.33 |
| 7 | Bangladesh | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 16.67 |
| 8 | West Indies | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| 9 | New Zealand | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - |
