20. Allan Donald destroying England in first Test, 1999
White Lightning executed one of the most destructive opening spells in Test cricket history. Put in to bat first at the Wanderers, Donald took full advantage of the conditions as he clean-bowled Mike Atherton with a classic in-swinger off the sixth ball (1/1). Nasser Hussain fell to Shaun Pollock in the next over (2/2), and then Donald struck twice more in the third over - getting rid of Mark Butcher and Alec Stewart off consecutive balls - to reduce the visitors to four wickets for just two runs on the board. SA went on to win the match by an innings and 21 runs.
19. Jacques Kallis's maiden century against Australia, 1997
In the Melbourne Test, the first of the series, South Africa were in trouble after the first innings, trailing the hosts by 123 runs. Coming in to bat on the fourth day facing an unrealistic victory target of 381, the main aim was to survive. A 22-year-old Kallis produced a superbly mature innings, defying the Aussie bowlers for 279 balls and almost six hours as he scored 101, his first Test century. SA eventually reached stumps at 273 for seven wickets, with Shaun Pollock not out on 15 and Lance Klusener unbeaten on 6.
18. Fanie de Villiers bowls South Africa to victory in Sydney, 1994
This match probably still ranks as South Africa's most famous Test victory of the post-isolation era. Chasing 117 to win in Sydney on the fourth day, Vinnige Fanie took four wickets to reduce Australia to 63/4 at stumps, giving the visitors a sniff. The final day proved to be a nail-biter, with Craig McDermott putting on an unbeaten 29 while his teammates around him fell to De Villiers and Allan Donald. Needing just six runs to win, De Villiers finally bagged the final scalp, a caught and bowled to get rid of Glenn McGrath (1) and seal a dramatic five-run victory. He finished with 6/43 for the innings and 10/123 for the match.
17. Graeme Smith walking out to bat injured against Australia, 2009
Captain Smith may not have always boasted the biggest number of fans, but he earned much respect when, in spite of a broken hand, he went out to bat in the third and final Test of SA's series Down Under last season. He didn't have to do it - SA had already won the series, and defeat seemed inevitable in the third match. Needing 119 more runs to win - with no spare wickets in hand - Smith still decided to go out and fight for his country. He scored three runs from 17 painful balls, but he won a nation's heart that day.
16. Lance Klusener v Sri Lanka at World Cup, 1999
Klusener announced his arrival at the tournament in England early on, hammering 52 runs from 45 deliveries against defending champions Sri Lanka. It helped South Africa to a modest total of just 199, but then Klusener helped destroy the batting line-up, taking three wickets for 21 runs (Jacques Kallis took 3/26 and Shaun Pollock 2/10). Klusener went on to win establish himself as the World Cup's top player, frequently saving South Africa with his whirlwind knocks at the end of the innings.
15. Graeme Smith and AB de Villiers anchor SA to win first Test, 2008
Only three teams in the history of Test cricket had chased down a fourth-innings total of more than 400 and won - the West Indies v Australia in 2003, India v West Indies in 1976 and Australia v England in 1948. Ten sides had lost while four others had drawn. Chasing 414 to win, the South Africans at least had the docile Perth track in their favour, but even so. Smith and De Villiers each scored centuries to lay the foundation, with Jacques Kallis, Hashim Amla and JP Duminy making half-centuries. SA went on to win the next Test to claim their first-ever series win over the Aussies in Australia.
14. Adam Gilchrist's double century against South Africa at the Wanderers, 2002
It had been a miserable summer for the South Arican cricketers. After getting drubbed 3-0 in the Test series by the Aussies Down Under, they quickly found themselves in trouble in the first five-dayer of the return series on home soil. Adam Gilchrist came to the crease with Australia 293/5 in their first innings and he proceeded to plunder an unbeaten 204 from 213 balls - the world's fastest double Test century at the time. Australia eventually declared on 652/7 and then bowled SA out twice for 159 and 133.
13. Herchelle Gibbs drops Steve Waugh at World Cup, 1999
Gibbs should have been the hero that day, after scoring 101 against a desperate Australian team that had to win to stay in the competition. After scoring 271, it seemed that South Africa, the favourites to win that year, would beat Australia. And nobody was arguing when the Aussies were 48/3, bringing Steve Waugh to the middle. But then he and Ricky Ponting stuck around, and just when they looked like they might take the game away, Waugh, on 56, was caught at mid-wicket by Gibbs, who then dropped the ball trying to throw it up in celebration too early. Waugh ended up unbeaten on 120 from 110 balls, steering his team to victory with two balls to spare.
12. Brian McMillan's agonising wait in World Cup semifinal against England, 1992
In the first encounter between these two sides at the tournament, England won the rain-hit affair by three wickets. The rematch, in the semifinal, was again affected by poor weather. Chasing 253 to win, SA were 231/6 after 42.5 overs when the rain came. It rained for 12 minutes, and after the anoraks had put their calculators away, SA needed 21 runs to win from one ball (the scoreboard incorrectly showed 22 runs required). Brian McMillan, on 21 not out, couldn't hide his disgust and he pushed the final delivery to mid-wicket for a single. Meyrick Pringle, in the stands, wept.
11. Shaun Pollock's gut feel helps SA to Commonwealth Games title, 1998
South Africa opted to blood youngsters at the Games in Kuala Lumpur, leaving behind stalwarts like Hansie Cronje and Allan Donald. The Australians, however, went there with a full-strength team, minus one or two injuries. Both sides made the final and SA coach Bob Woolmer and his team agreed to bat first if they won the toss. Skipper Shaun Pollock won the toss, but on a "gut feel" he decided to bowl first. SA took some quick early wickets to reduce Australia to 58/4 before dismissing them for 183. SA survived a late wobble to reach 184/6 and take the gold medal. Steve Waugh said afterwards he would have happily traded a Test century for a Commonwealth Games gold medal.
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