DURBAN (Agencies) - Sri Lanka recorded their first ever Test victory on South African soil after a comprehensive 208-run victory on day four of the second Test at Kingsmead. Left-arm spin bowler Rangana Herath picked up 5-79 late on the penultimate day to dismiss the Proteas for 241 in pursuit of their mammoth 450 victory target.
The win is Sri Lanka's first in eight attempts in South Africa and only their ninth Test triumph outside the sub-continent. The Proteas' hopes of pulling off an unlikely victory were undermined by the loss of five wickets for 45 runs in 23 overs in the afternoon session.
Jacques Rudolph, Jacques Kallis, Hashim Amla, Ashwell Prince and Mark Boucher all departed to leave South Africa on 136-6 at tea and with Sri Lanka seemingly on course for victory inside four days.
A battling 99-run partnership between AB de Villiers and Dale Steyn gave South Africa and their supporters brief hope of preserving their series lead, however Herath returned to level matters late in the day.
South Africa have now lost four successive Tests at the Durban venue and the sides will now reunite at Cape Town next week for a winner-takes-all contest. Sri Lanka lost six of their previous seven Tests played in South Africa - drawing one - but started day four leading by 426 and in pursuit of a famous win.
New batsman Chanaka Welegedara - whose 5-52 was instrumental in South Africa's collapse to 168 in the first innings - claimed boundaries off the second and third balls he faced, both off Steyn. But the bowler got his revenge, and his fifth wicket of the innings, as the fourth ball the tail-ender faced proved to be his last. Again, Welegedara attempted to find the rope but this time he was gobbled up by Amla at square leg to go for 10.
The innings ended when Dilhara Fernando was unable to control a Morne Morkel delivery directed into the body and lobbed the ball to Prince at gully. Back in the field, Welegedara almost gave Sri Lanka the perfect start when he induced an edge from Rudolph, but Angelo Mathews was unable to claim a one-handed catch diving to his left at slip.
Smith survived an lbw appeal from Perera in the sixth over but eventually succumbed for 26 to a short-length delivery from Fernando which he could only fence to Mahela Jayawardene at second slip.

SRI LANKA 1ST INNINGS: 338
SOUTH AFRICA 1ST INNINGS: 168
SRI LANKA 2ND INNINGS:
(OVERNIGHT: 256-7):
T Paranavitana c Prince b Morkel    9
T Dilshan c Smith b Steyn    4
K Sangakkara c Smith b Imran    108
M Jayawardene lbw b De Lange    14
T Samaraweera b Imran    43
A Mathews c Boucher b Steyn    3
D Chandimal c Boucher b Steyn    54
T Perera c Kallis b Steyn    12
R Herath not out    8
C Welegedera c Amla b Steyn    10
D Fernando c Prince b Morkel    3
EXTRAS: (b5, lb3, nb2, w1)    11
TOTAL: (all out; 78.2 overs)    279
FOW: 1-4, 2-20, 3-44, 4-138, 5-141, 6-245, 7-245, 8-262, 9-276
BOWLING: Morkel 18.2-4-46-2, Steyn 20-3-73-5, De Lange 13-2-45-1, Kallis 11-1-43-0, Imran Tahir 16-1-64-2
SOUTH AFRICA 2ND INNINGS:
J Rudolph c Jayawardene b Perera    22
G Smith c Jayawardene b Fernando    26
H Amla run out    51
J Kallis c Paranavitana b Herath    0
A Prince c Paranavitana b Fernando    7
AB de Villiers lbw b Herath    69
M Boucher lbw b Herath    7
D Steyn lbw b Herath    43
M Morkel lbw b Dilshan    5
Imran Tahir not out    0
M de Lange b Herath    0
EXTRAS: (b 6, lb 1, w 3, nb 1)    11
TOTAL: (all out; 87.3 overs)    241
FOW: 1-37, 2-88, 3-97, 4-106, 5-116, 6-133, 7-232, 8-241, 9-241, 10-241
BOWLING: Welegedara 16-5-33-0, Perera 13-0-48-1, Fernando 13-3-29-2, Dilshan 11-2-35-1, Herath 30.3-7-79-5, Mathews 3-0-9-0, Samaraweera 1-0-1-0