South Africa delivered an impressive performance Day 4 to beat Pakistan by 8 wickets in the second Test in Rawalpindi, leveling the series 1–1. After Pakistan posted 333 runs in their first innings and 138 in their second, South Africa chased down the 68-run target in just 12.3 overs. Simon Harmer was the standout bowler for South Africa, taking six wickets in Pakistan’s second innings as the hosts struggled to build any significant resistance. Aiden Markram And Ryan Rickelton provided a clinical chase, securing victory with relative ease and setting the stage for an exciting conclusion to the series.
Pakistan’s collapse on Day 4: Simon Harmer’s six-wicket haul shatters the hosts
On Day 4, Pakistan’s second innings was undone by Harmer’s brilliant bowling performance. Harmer claimed 6 wickets, including crucial dismissals of Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel And Muhammad Rizwan. Despite a hard knock from Babar, who scored 50, Pakistan were at 138 all out. Keshav Maharaj provided excellent support and took 2 wickets while Kagiso Rabada And Marco Jansen contributed to important breakthroughs. Pakistan’s batting crumbled in the face of South Africa’s brutal spin attack, and they were dismissed inside fifty overs. The fall of wickets came quickly, with the hosts unable to recover after an early collapse, leaving South Africa with a small but manageable target of 68 runs to win.
READ also: Pakistan announces white-ball squads for South Africa series, Babar Azam returns in T20Is
South Africa’s clinical chase: Aiden Markram and Ryan Rickelton seal victory
South Africa’s response to the small target was calm and calculated. Starting with Markram and Rickelton, the Proteas moved quickly to target, needing just 12.3 overs to complete the chase. Markram was the aggressive force, scoring 42 runs off 45 balls, including some sharp boundaries. Rickelton, on the other hand, was more cautious but solid in his approach and finished on 25 not out. The pair succeeded quickly despite some tight bowling from the Pakistani seamers. The win was a testament to South Africa’s resilience, with their bowlers dominating the game and providing a perfect ending to the series.
Here’s how fans reacted:
In a parallel universe, Simon Harmer and Kyle Abbott don’t follow the Kolpak path and, together with Rabada, form the deadliest bowling trio in human history.
— Prithvi (@Prithvi10_) October 23, 2025
Meanwhile, there is an incredible fight back through South Africa. Led by the spinners. So what kind of wicket do you have for the first Test in Kolkata?
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) October 23, 2025
Simon Harmer has bowled exceptionally well with all his experience, which I expected before this series.
Varyed his pace. Getting hitters ready for that slider/arm ball. Some overspin and hence the extra bit of bounce.
A game-changing spell.
— Martiaal (@coverpoint_) October 23, 2025
“Spinners dominate this series and who would have thought it was South African spinners?” says Ramiz Raja on commentary.
Strange comment considering the quality and experience of Simon Harmer and Keshav Maharaj. Senuran Muthusamy also had 277 FC wickets at 27.96 for this Test.…
— CricBlog ✍ (@cric_blog) October 23, 2025
Simon Harmer has 1000 FC wickets.
Essex legend.
— Behara Qzi 👇 👇 _‑si_ 👇 _ October 23, 2025
Pakistan this year in Home Tests on illegal circuits
– Lost a Test to WI after being reduced to 38/7 in the first innings
– Lost a Test to South Africa after being reduced to 235/8 with a lead of 98 runs
In both series they are 1-0 up, but cannot win a series #PAKvSA— JSK (@imjsk27) October 23, 2025
Thank you Team South Africa for successfully chasing and concluding the competition on the first session of the 4th day to make life easier for the people of Rawalpindi and Islamabad.
A deserved victory 🙌🏼 🇿🇦#PAKvSA— Ali Sethi (@Alicethi_1) October 23, 2025
The last two South African wickets added 165 runs and our entire Pakistan team made 138.
On spin wickets, if we can’t get the tail out and bat in the second innings, then this whole thing is a disaster.#PAKvSA
— Adnan Alavi (@adnanalavi) October 23, 2025
The World Test Champions return to win the 2nd Test in impressive fashion! 💪
Series level 1-1
How many of us wish there was a third test?#PAKvSA #WTC27 pic.twitter.com/WtZg1Q9orC
— ThePoppingCrease (@PoppingCreaseSA) October 23, 2025
Congratulations to the SA team on winning this test match. SA Batters showed how to play under pressure and take the win against the expected winning team. Pak Captain must learn from the expertise of the SA team. #PAKvSA
— Syed Khalid Mahmood (@SyedKhalidMah12) October 23, 2025
What a victory for South Africa! It is not easy to dominate the home side in such challenging conditions. Too bad it’s a two-match series. I would have liked to see more such encounters. #PAKvSA
— Brashna Kasi (@Brashnaa) October 23, 2025
South Africa records a test victory in Pakistan for the first time since 2007 💥#Cricket #PAKvSA #SouthAfrica pic.twitter.com/GDMMjnkCKx
— CricketTimes.com (@CricketTimesHQ) October 23, 2025
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