 Smith fell early as his team struggled before sealing victory |
Captain Graeme Smith insisted South Africa had plenty to work on despite beating Pakistan to claim their second successive 2-1 Test series win. The hosts survived a day-three stutter to win the third Test by five wickets.
"Our feet are still on the ground. We've won four out of six Tests on wickets that haven't suited our style of play and we're pretty chuffed.
"But we have a lot of work to do. It's on to one-day cricket, with the World Cup around the corner," said Smith.
South Africa came from 1-0 down to beat India earlier in the season and looked like repeating the feat against Pakistan before Sunday's play.
However, they were in soon trouble at 39-4, chasing 161 on a Cape Town pitch offering help to seam and spin bowlers.
 | We've chased well this summer on wickets that have been difficult for batting |
Smith and Hashim Amla fell to the impressive Mohammad Asif in the morning but Jacques Kallis and Ashwell Prince battled away to record fifties and help set up victory.
"It had been a difficult wicket throughout the game, wickets fell in clumps, and that was always a worry for us," the skipper explained.
"But we knew that if we got one decent partnership and got close we had the ability to finish the game off.
"We've chased well this summer on wickets that have been difficult for batting.
"It was a fantastic performance under pressure, and Ashley and Jacques were tremendous."
Kallis was named man of the match and series after scoring 272 runs and taking 10 wickets in three games.
| They bowled really well in the morning - we had to absorb a lot of pressure and fight it out |
He fell shortly before victory was achieved and was relieved to come through a stern examination and a gruelling season of six Tests in seven weeks.
"I hope I never have to go through this again!" the all-rounder joked. "It's been tough cricket and Pakistan put us under pressure the whole series.
"They bowled really well in the morning - we had to absorb a lot of pressure and fight it out.
"But there was no way they could do it the whole day and after lunch there were a few more bad balls to put away.
"It's been hard work all summer and at times we haven't played as well as we would want but the guys are learning all the time and it bodes well for the future."
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