South Africa captain Siya Kolisi said he had to prove himself after being given the chance to lead the Springboks out in their Rugby Championship win over New Zealand.
Kolisi's early try after the break sparked the hosts' revival after they went in at half-time 9-3 down before roaring to an 18-12 victory in Cape Town.
It was the fourth successive win by the Springboks over the All Blacks, as they maintained their perfect record in this year's Rugby Championship.
Kolisi described the encounter as South Africa's most important game since they won the World Cup final against the same opponents in Paris last year.
"The coach gave me the chance when I said I was okay so I couldn’t go half-hearted. Nobody is going to celebrate you if you don’t go flat out," said Kolisi.
"We didn’t start the way we wanted to and the coach was quite honest with us [at half-time]. At the start of the second half we did what we wanted.
"This game was really big for us."
The triumph marked the first time since 1949 that South Africa have won four straight Tests against New Zealand.
However, head coach Rassie Erasmus was muted despite achieving the most successful streak against South Africa's arch-rivals in the professional era.
"It was nice, but they have had big scores against us and six times in a row they have beaten us," he said.
"It's nothing to brag about because they have done worse to us. But it was special."
South Africa beat Ireland in ODI opener to avenge T20I loss
South Africa cruised to a 139-run win over Ireland in the teams' first ODI in Abu Dhabi, with Lizaad Williams tearing through their opponents' batting order.
The Proteas approached Wednesday's contest reeling from a shock T20I defeat to Ireland on Sunday, with Ross Adair's maiden international century ensuring the two-match series ended 1-1.
There was not to be a repeat in the 50-over format, however, with Ireland's batting order collapsing after Ryan Rickelton (91) and Tristan Stubbs (79) guided an otherwise shaky South Africa to 271-9.
The Proteas started miserably by losing three wickets for 39 runs, Mark Adair taking two of them on his way to figures of 4-50.
But opener Rickelton stayed cool while the wickets tumbled around him, lasting 102 deliveries and allowing Stubbs to join in on the act with comfortably his best ODI score, dragging South Africa to a respectable total.
Ireland might have harboured hopes of a successful chase, but Paul Stirling's fourth-ball dismissal for just two runs set the tone, and a spate of four more wickets in the space of six overs dropped Ireland to 61-5.
Williams finished with figures of 4-32 from his 10 overs for the Proteas, who needed just 32 overs to finish off the tail and bring some much-needed positivity to their tour of the United Arab Emirates, which started with an ODI series loss to Afghanistan.
Data Debrief: Williams wins it
Rickelton and Stubbs carried South Africa to a score they were capable of defending despite no other batter scoring more than Bjorn Fortuin's 28 – seven scored 13 runs or fewer.
But it was Williams who made sure of the victory, taking three of the first four wickets to leave Ireland in a tailspin, then going on to record the best figures of his young ODI career.
In none of his previous five ODIs had Williams managed more than two wickets, while his 32 runs conceded were also his fewest in the format.
Stirling 'over the moon' after historic Ireland win over South Africa
Ireland captain Paul Stirling is "over the moon" after securing their first-ever T20I victory over South Africa, beating them by 10 runs.
Brilliant performances from brothers Ross and Mark Adair set them on course to the win, as they drew the two-match series 1-1.
Ross Adair scored his maiden international century, combining with Stirling for a superb opening partnership of 137, leading the team to 195-6, their highest T20I score against South Africa.
Mark Adair then followed up that performance with an impressive stand in the field, finishing with 4-31, before Graham Hume's 3-25 rounded off the triumph.
And Stirling was thrilled with how Ireland performed on both sides, particularly in the field.
"At halfway, we wanted an extra 15-20 runs," he said.
"They squeezed us, and we felt under-par. There was less dew [on Sunday] and we managed to get over the line.
"You need time at the crease to get the pace of the wicket. That is what won us the game.
"With new batters coming in, you always have a chance. We are absolutely delighted [with the win]. It could have gone either way. Over the moon [with the result] and hopefully we can bring it into the ODIs."
South Africa started brightly, with both Reeze Hendricks and Matthew Breetzke getting 51 after Ryan Rickelton's opening 36.
However, they soon collapsed after that, with none of the other eight batters able to reach double figures as they finished on 185-9.
Captain Aiden Markram admitted that fine margins cost them on Sunday, but he still found positives to take from the series.
"We thought it was chaseable for sure," he said. "Small moments in the game.
"It comes down to execution and if you can win those moments. When you lose wickets regularly…you want a 20-30-run partnership. They made it tough for us.
"Each guy will have a certain area to improve. We never really stop learning. Ultimately, making better decisions and winning games for South Africa."
The two sides now turn their attention to the three-match ODI series, which starts on Wednesday at the Zayed Cricket Stadium.
Sri Lanka make light work of New Zealand to complete series sweep
Sri Lanka won by an innings and 154 runs in the second Test against New Zealand to complete a 2-0 series clean sweep.
The tourists fought hard on day four in Galle, but despite the efforts of Tom Blundell (60), Glenn Phillips (78) and Mitchell Santner (67), Sri Lanka got the job done in emphatic fashion.
Having been skittled all out for 88 in their first innings, chasing Sri Lanka's mammoth total of 602-5, New Zealand at least showed more fighting spirit on Sunday.
Sri Lanka simply had too much, though, with New Zealand bowled out for 360 when Santner's stand came to an end.
Debutant off-spinner Nishan Peiris sent Santner packing, and he took a starring role with 6-170 across the Black Caps' second innings, while he had earlier dismissed Phillips and Blundell.
Prabath Jayasuriya (3-139) helped round things off, as Sri Lanka claimed their third straight Test victory.
Elsewhere, there was no play on day three of India's second Test against Bangladesh due to a wet outfield.
Data Debrief: Back-to-back against the Black Caps
Sri Lanka have clinched back-to-back Test victories against New Zealand since November 2012.
They have also now won five of their last six Tests at Galle International Stadium, with their only defeat in that span coming against Pakistan in 2023.
New Zealand, on the other hand, have now won just one of their last 11 Tests on the road (D3 L6), with that victory coming in Bangladesh last December.
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