Match overview
South Africa Cricket beat Pakistan Cricket by 8 wickets in the Test match played at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium on 20 October 2025. Pakistan won the toss and batted, posting 333 in the first innings. South Africa replied with 404, taking a first-innings lead of 71. Pakistan then collapsed to 138 in their second innings, leaving South Africa a straightforward target of 68, which they reached with 8 wickets in hand. Keshav Maharaj was named Player of the Match after taking 9 for 136 across the match.
The margin flatters South Africa slightly, in the sense that Pakistan were competitive for the first half of the match. Their 333 was well above the venue's average first-innings score of 214 across 79 matches. But once South Africa's spinners got to work on a wearing surface in the third innings, Pakistan's batting offered little resistance. The second innings lasted less than half the deliveries of the first.
Maharaj and Simon Harmer shared 17 of Pakistan's 20 wickets across both innings. Maharaj took 9 for 136 from 54.2 overs; Harmer 8 for 125 from 45. That level of combined output from a spin pair on Pakistani soil marks a significant performance, and it will take considerable thought from Pakistan's coaching staff to find an answer if the series continues under similar conditions.
Venue and conditions
Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium has a well-established record as a high-scoring venue in the first innings, at least relative to its own second-innings behaviour. The average first-innings score across 79 matches is 214; the average second innings sits at 208. Both sides exceeded those averages comfortably in the first two innings here, which pointed to a good surface early on. The pitch's character changed as the match progressed, which is typical of Rawalpindi when spin bowlers are operating on day three and beyond.
The ground has a toss-field rate of 58 per cent, meaning winning sides at this venue lean marginally towards fielding. Pakistan's decision to bat first after winning the toss was not unreasonable given their 333, but the surface's tendency to turn later in matches benefited South Africa, who were able to exploit the deteriorating pitch with their two front-line spinners in both the second and fourth innings.
Rawalpindi's chase success rate stands at 60 per cent historically. South Africa's target of 68 in the fourth innings was so far below the venue's second-innings average of 208 that conditions were almost irrelevant by that point. The result was settled well before the final session.
How to watch
Test cricket between Pakistan and South Africa is broadcast in the UK on Sky Sports Cricket, with live streaming available through Sky Go and NOW TV for subscribers. Individual match passes and monthly passes are available via NOW TV for those without a full Sky subscription.
BBC Test Match Special provides live ball-by-ball radio commentary on BBC Sounds and on Radio 4 Long Wave in some time zones, making it the go-to option for listeners who prefer audio coverage of the five-day game. UK viewers should note that Pakistan home Tests often begin at 05:00 GMT or 06:00 GMT given the time difference.
Recent form
Pakistan came into this match with a mixed recent record. Their 2025 form shows three wins against South Africa, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, against defeats to India twice. The win over South Africa in the most recent prior meeting had given Pakistan some confidence on home soil before this Test reversed the dynamic.
South Africa's recent form makes for difficult reading. Four of their last five results ahead of this match were defeats, with losses to Namibia, England twice, and Pakistan. Their only win in that sequence came against England. Winning this Test despite that broader context suggests their performance here was above their recent baseline, driven in large part by the effectiveness of their spin attack on a surface that suited them.