Sri Lanka drew 2nd test but lose series
A gritty South African tail fought off Sri Lanka's spinners to snatch a nerve-jangling draw in the second Test and seal a historic 1-0 series win.
The series victory propelled South Africa to the top of world Test ranking ahead of Australia.
Chasing a target of 369, the visitors were reeling at 148-8 but tail enders Vernon Philander (27 not out) and Imran Tahir (four not out) hung on in the final nine overs to finish on 159-8.
For Sri Lanka, it was only their second home series defeat since 2006.
Scores: Sri Lanka 421 (Jayawardene 165, Dickwella 72, Mathews 63) and 229 for 8 dec (Sangakkara 72, Mathews 63*, Morkel 4-45). South Africa 282 (Amla 139, Perera 5-69, Herath 4-71) and 159 for 8 (Herath 5-40, Perera 3-60).
The player of the match was Mahela Jayawardene while the player of the series was MDK Perera.