An extraordinary day which saw both sides threaten to win the third Test but ultimately ended with a draw as the Kensington Oval again threw up a real nail-biter. By stumps it was the South Africans applying almost unbearable pressure with Mervyn Dillon and Dinanath Ramnarine defending tigerishly, and play-acting even more determinedly.

By a farcical close, South Africa were just three wickets short of pulling off the most unlikely of victories, but Dillon's bat in particular has been a defensive barn door already in this series and as the South Africans encircled him with fielders, he blocked everything which came his way.

Ramnarine, meanwhile,did his best to frustrate the South Africans with a classic display of time-wasting, taking studious care to tap down non-existent bumps in the pitch and then calling the physio out with some strapping for a hamstring injury which had suddenly appeared from nowhere. Umpire Steve Bucknor eventually had enough of his antics and issued him with an official warning.

In one of those wonderful cricketing ironies, the substantial crowd ended the day cheering every ball the tail-enders survived as loud as any boundary from Brian Lara or Carl Hooper on Saturday.

It was probably a fair conclusion to a hard-fought Test match, during which the tourists almost always held the upper hand but never quite forced home their superiority. It also leaves the series well balanced, as the sides go into the fourth Test in Antigua which starts on Friday with South Africa still holding a 1-0 lead.

Chasing an improbable 265 to win off 36 overs, the West Indies looked to be doing all that was required to see the game out safely. Wavell Hinds (8) nudged and nurdled while Chris Gayle (48) hammered the ball to all parts in his now familiar cavalier style.

Even when Hinds fell to Nicky Boje, there did not appear to be too much cause for concern, the left-hander not quite getting to the pitch as he drove at the left-arm spinner and edging a simple chance to Daryll Cullinan at first slip.

Marlon Samuels fell to the same combination for three, but Gayle was still blowing extremely hot. Having taken 14 off the first over after tea bowled by Shaun Pollock, he continued to go on the attack, eventually undone by his own belligerence as he edged a big drive at Kallis to Mark Boucher.

When Ramnaresh Sarwan (0) shouldered arms to a delivery from Jacques Kallis which clipped off-stump, the West Indies were 64-4 and one sensed that for the first time the South Africans believed they could win the match.

CaptainHooper (5) edged a perfect Boje delivery to Boucher, Ridley Jacobs (1) was snapped up at silly point by McKenzie off the same bowler and Brian Lara missed a big inswinger from Lance Klusener to be bowled for eight, scored off 58 balls. At 82-7 it was time for the heroics and theatrics of Dillon and Ramnarine.

The South African declaration came shortly before Cullinan fell 18 runs shy of what would have been his second century in the match, his third in the series and one that would have extended his South African record for Test hundreds to 15. Cullinan was very well caught by Brian Lara at first slip as he got a bottom edge to a heave across the line at Ramnarine.

It was Cullinan's stand of 70 for the seventh wicket with Pollock (40) which took South Africa from a position of considerable danger (97-6) to a point where they had made the match safe.

Pollock fell for 40, driving at an away-swinger from Courtney Walsh, the edge flying to Hooper at second slip. Pollock struck six boundaries in a cameo performance of counter-attacking cricket.

Ramanarine picked up the wickets of Cullinan and then Allan Donald, batting with a runner, in consecutive deliveries. How annoyed the leg-spinner would have been to see South Africa declare as he stood on a hat-trick with Makhaya Ntini as opposition is anyone's guess. Consolation was career-best figures of 5-78.

After the first three overs of the day were blocked away for maidens, overnight batsmen Cullinan and Kallis went on the attack, Cullinan lofting Hooper for six onto the Kensington stand roof and then over mid-on for four in the same over.

But the first hour was to belong to the West Indies and just as Kallis looked to be settling, he edged a bat-pad chance off Hooper straight to Sarwan at short-leg and was gone for 20, made off 88 balls with three fours.

Klusener has had a dreadful tour with the bat and his miserable run continued as he scratched around for 17 balls before driving Ramnarine straight to Cameron Cuffy at mid-off to depart for just four.

Strangely, Klusener stood his ground waiting for a decision from umpire Darryl Hair, presumably in the belief that it had been a bump ball. But a nod of the head from Hair was enough, and television replays showed quite plainly that Klusener could have no complaints.

The Kensington Oval will not go down as Boucher's favourite ground either. After making just three in the first innings, the 'keeper failed to get off the mark this time as a perfect leg-spinner from Ramnarine took the outside edge and was very well taken by Ridley Jacobs behind the stumps.

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