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0-3 down, the ferocious Lankan Lions displayed resilience to clinch the pulsating 4th ODI at Kimberley by 5 wickets with 8 deliveries remaining. The penultimate encounter of the Sunfoil series witnessed the pendulum swing wildly from one end to another until the game was eventually settled in the favour of the visiting Lankans. Having won the toss and electing to bat first on a friendly wicket, South Africa posted a total of 299-7, highlighted by Captain AB de Villiers' sparkling 96. The Proteas were derailed in the last 10 overs wherein they scored only 51 and lost 3 wickets. Chasing 300, The Lankan captain Dilshan slammed 87 to ensure that Sri Lanka were in the hunt till the end. Nonetheless, the turning point of the match was Thisara Perera's career best 69*, adorned with 5 sixes, amidst immense pressure that enabled Sri Lanka to restore a bit of dignity and script their first triumph in the Sunfoil series.

The 4th ODI between South Africa and Sri Lanka got underway today on a flat deck at De Beers Diamond Oval. Having already sealed the 5 match ODI series, the Proteas decided to do a bit of experimentation by testing their bench strength. All-rounder Albie Morkel and bowling spearhead Dale Steyn were rested. They were replaced by Wayne Parnell and Vernon Philander. The Lankans also made a few changes. Lahiru Thirumane came in for Mahela Jayawardene, who has been ruled out for the next few weeks with a back injury. Thisara Perera and offie Sachitra Senanayake, making his first international appearance, made the cut at the expense of Kosala Kulasekara and Dhammika Prasad. The flip of the coin went South Africa's way and their skipper AB de Villiers predictably chose to bat first.

The openers, Graeme Smith and Alviro Petersen, got the Proteas off to a blistering start. The experienced Smith rediscovered his form and was well in control in the middle. His partner Alviro Petersen was also at home against the new cherry. Suprisingly, debutant spinner, Senanayake was brought into the attack as early as the 5th over. But Petersen did the allow the young man to settle down. He used his feet expertly and collected a six and a four in Senanayake's 2nd over. The confident pair were not hesitant to advance down the track even when confronting the pacers. South Africa had made 64-0 at the conclusion of the mandatory powerplay.

Rangana Herath got rid of Petersen on his first ball to provide Sri Lanka some respite. AB de Villiers waked out to bat ahead of Colin Ingram possibly to keep the left-right combination going. The south paw Graeme Smith got to his 45th ODI fifty via a nudge down to mid-wicket in the 15th over.

The Lankans lions took the bowling powerplay as soon as it became available and Senanayake suffered again in the powerplay - this time at the hands of De Villiers. The creative Nashua Titans batsman hit 3 boundaries in the 19th over. Lasith Malinga was not spared either. The fifty of the ominous partnership came up in just 44 deliveries. The run hungry Proteas called for the bating powerplay immediately after the bowling powerplay ended. The carnage continued as it kept raining sixes and fours at  the De Beers Diamond Oval. AB raised his half-century off 31 balls with a sensational six over long-off. The trio of spinners - Dilshan, Herath and Senanayake were taken to the cleaners.

The returning Lasith Malinga halted the 87 run partnership in the 24th over by taking out the former skipper for a near run-a-ball 68 by means of a short of a length delivery. Smith did not get enough elevation and popped it to his conterpart, Dilshan at short mid-wicket. Colin Ingram(1) floundered another opportunity and fell lbw to Kulasekara in the next over to give Dilshan & co hope of a comeback. Despite the double blow, the home team were cruising towards a 325+ total at 199-3 in 30 overs.

The new man JP Duminy and AB, who tempered down his turbo-charged aggression a wee bit, rotated the strike well and played some smart cricket. South Africa's ability to stitch together partnerships consistently has been their mantra towards success in this Sunfoil series. The De Viiliers-Duminy partnership also crossed the 50 run mark. However, Sri Lanka roared back into the contest as Perera undid Duminy (36) and De Villiers(96) in quick succession to run into the lower order. Duminy was caught behind while AB's timber was rattled by a slower one. Faf du Plessis(5) followed his captain back to the hutch to trigger the alarm bells in the Proteas camp. South Africa's momentum slackened from thereon which galvanized Sri Lanka to limit the hosts to 299-7. If it had not been for some useful hits from Wayne Parnell (21) and Robin Petersen(23*), South Africa would have lost their way completely.

In response to South Africa's 299-7, the Lankans began on a positive note. Dilshan, back to his attacking best, whipped Morne Morkel over square leg to launch the first maximum of the Sri Lankan innings in the 3rd over. Sadly for the tourists, Lonwabo Tsotsobe found Tharanga's edge in the following over which was easily grasped by AB de Villiers. An undeterred Dilshan though looked to hit his way out of shoddy form. His signature, Dil-scoop off Philander in the 7th over underlined his immense confidence. Kumar Sangakkara joined in the fun and brought up the 50 of the innings with a majestic six over Tsotsobe's head. Coincidentally, Sri Lanka's start mirrored that of South Africa's. The senior batsmen took advantage of the momentum generated by the Lankan bowlers at the fag end of South Africa's innings to take the Asian stars to 89-1 in 15 overs. In the interim, 'Dangerous Dilshan' cantered to his fifty by squeezing a full ball towards point.

The bowling powerplay reaped immediate benefit for the World Number 3 outfit. The' Petersen combo' broke the 83 run stand. Sangakkara (32) albeit making good connection with the ball was undone by an absolute blinder of a catch by Alviro Petersen at deep mid-wicket off the bowling of Robin Petersen. The promising Dinesh Chandimal opened his account with a whack over long on for a biggie. Meanwhile, Vernon Philander appeared to be only a pale shadow of what he was in whites and spilled runs galore. Chandimal made good progress whilst Dilshan, who lived through a referral in the 22nd over held the key to Sri Lanka's chase. The occasional bowlers, Du Plessis and Duminy were also rendered ineffective by the awesome twosome.

AB drafted his go to man, Tsotsobe back into the attack in order to sneak in a wicket. The 27 year old responded superbly by dismissing Dilshan for 87. The Lankan commander chopped a short delivery towards Duminy at cover, who completed a sharp catch. The game was delicately poised with Sri Lanka at 173-3 in 30 overs.

The inordinate responsibility of guiding Lanka to the finish line fell on Chandimal. The young lad stuck to the basics and picked up the ones and twos on offer en route to his 2nd half century of the Sunfoil ODI series. South Africa transferred the pressure onto the guests when Philander came back with a bang to get the better of the Lahiru Thirimanne (13) with a wonderfully disguised slower ball. Thisara Perera vindicated his promotion up the order and clubbed the bowlers, thereby reducing the required rate to under 6.

Tsotsobe authored a twist in the tale by bowling the main man, Chandimal for 59 in the 41st over. But, Perera put Lanka back on track with the help of consecutive sixes off Petersen. Perera required just 30 deliveries to notch up his maiden half-century. 27 off 5 overs did not prove to be a tough nut to crack and Perera and Angelo Mathews steered the islanders to a thrilling 5 wicket victory with 8 balls to spare.

Sri Lanka, who have been at the receiving end of criticism for nine long months will be eyeing another consolation win when they collide with AB de Villiers' warriors in the 5th and final ODI at Johannesburg on Sunday to end their South African sojourn on a high.

Teams:

South Africa: G Smith, A Petersen, C Ingram, AB de Villiers(captain&keeper), F du Plessis, JP Duminy, R Petersen, V Philander, L Tsotsobe, W Parnell, M Morkel.

Sri Lanka: U Tharanga, T Dilshan(captain), K Sangakkara(keeper), D Chandimal, L Thirumane, A Mathews, T Perera, N Kulasekara, R Herath, L Malinga, S Senanayake.

Mini-Scorecard:

South Africa: 299-7(50 overs, 5.98 rpo)
AB de Villiers 96(76) R Herath 2-45
G Smith 68(69) T Perera 2-34

Sri Lanka: 304-5(48.4 overs, 6.24 rpo)
T Dilshan 87(87) L Tsotsobe 3-51
T Perera 69*(44) V Philander 1-39

Sri Lanka won by 5 wickets