South Africa made a roaring comeback after defeat in their first Test against Pakistan by leveling the two-match Test series 1-1 in Rawalpindi, beating the hosts by eight wickets. Off-spinner Simon Harmer set up this emphatic win for the visitors with figures of 6/50, dismantling the hosts for just 138 in the second innings, setting an easy run chase of just 68 runs for South Africa. With this loss, Pakistan has slipped behind India in the World Test Championship (WTC) points table.
India moved to third place, and Pakistan to fifth. The defending WTC Champions South Africa, currently occupy fourth spot after this crushing win in Rawalpindi Test. The victory was also their first in Pakistan since 2007. It was set by their spin twins - Keshav Maharaj and Harmer, who ended up picking 17 wickets combined in the second Test. Proteas skipper Aiden Markram led the smallish run-chase with an aggressive 42 off 45 balls, including eight fours, before being dismissed LBW by Noman Ali with only four needed for victory.
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After the skipper's dismissal, Tristan Stubbs, who scored a resolute half-century in the first innings, departed for a duck, edging Noman to slip. Ryan Rickelton sealed the win for the visitors with a six off Sajid Khan, remaining unbeaten on 25. Meanwhile, Harmer achieved a huge milestone by becoming only the third South African bowler to reach 1000 wickets in first-class cricket when he dismissed Noman.
Notably, Pakistan began Day four with Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan at the crease. However, both batters fell in quick succession, triggering a huge collapse, which saw the hosts losing six wickets for just 44 runs. Babar was immediately out after reaching a half-century, extending his century drought in Test cricket with his last ton coming way back in December 2022.
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Riwzan soon followed his senior batter as he edged the ball to Tony de Zorzi off Harmer's  bowling, leaving the hosts in massive trouble with a lead of just 34 runs. Salman Agha showed some fight by counterattacking, but he was soon dismissed for 28 off 42 balls to Maharaj. The left-arm bowler soon removed Sajid Khan with a stumping to end Pakistan's innings and set up an easy win for South Africa.
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