The South African team might not have the best track record when it comes to ICC trophy playoffs, but have still had some great moments in international cricket. There have been some great moments where the rainbow nation has beaten all the top teams in the world no matter what format they were playing in. There were moments where the Proteas have surprised everyone in cricket.
There was no doubt in 2014 the Proteas still had some great players and were perhaps the best international side in that year as well. However, it was still a huge challenge to beat Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka especially in 2014 where they still had some great players. The Proteas had struggled to get a Test series win in Sri Lanka where they could not get through the spinning tracks in the Island nation.
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2014: The 21-year drought finally ends
The Proteas were about to play a two-match Test series against Sri Lanka who had been dominating the rainbow nation at their homeground for more than two decades. The first Test was to be played at Galle, which was one of the trickiest pitches to bat on. However thanks to contributions from Dean Elgar, Faf Du Plessis and JP Duminy who got the team to a score of 455 in the first innings. Galle, which was known to be a track for spinners, went on to be dominated by the pacers as the Lankans could only manage 292. The lead was enough to make sure South Africa gave a big target and bowled them out to get the lead in the series.
The second Test match was filled with drama as well. It started off with the Srilankans being favourites after getting a 400+ total in the first innings and keeping the Proteas down to just 282. The Lankan lions gave them a steep target as well, but the Proteas still edged out a draw in the end as they went on to win their first series in the Island nation after 21 years under the leadership of Hashim Amla. This was a great achievement for them as they finally ended their drought on this day of 28th July 2014.