With just five wickets standing between South Africa and a crucial step towards the World Test Championship final, centuries from Tristan Stubbs and Temba Bavuma, along with strong bowling performances, have put the hosts in a commanding position.

Should South Africa be able to chalk up the win in Durban it will be an historic moment as they have never managed to beat Sri Lanka in a Test in the city.

Tristan Stubbs - Cricinfo

South Africa resumed their second innings on Friday morning at 132/3, with Bavuma on 24 and Stubbs on 17. Stubbs went on to score a career-best 122 runs, marking his second Test century, while Bavuma followed suit with a well-crafted 113 before being dismissed lbw. This brought Bavuma's total to 183 runs for the match, after he had scored 70 in the first innings.

Bavuma’s departure after 100.4 overs led to the declaration, with South Africa finishing on 366/5, holding a commanding lead of 515 runs.

Sri Lanka showed improved resilience with the bat in their second innings, but at the close of play, they were still staring down the barrel of defeat at 103/5. Dinesh Chandimal was unbeaten on 29, while Angelo Mathews had scored 25, and Pathum Nissanka made 23.

Gerald Coetzee - Cricinfo

Marco Jansen continued his excellent form, taking 2/22 from 11 overs, bringing his tally for the match to 9 wickets. Kagiso Rabada also chipped in with 2/34 from 11 overs, while the fiery Gerald Coetzee claimed the wicket of Nissanka.

Play will resume at Kingsmead on Saturday at 9:30 AM, with Sri Lanka still trailing by 413 runs and half their wickets already back in the hut.

Morgan Piek OFM Sport