We played the big moments better: Smith

"This was an outstanding bowling performance, there wasn't a lot on offer. There was a little bit of reverse-swing but we had to create a lot of pressure and we did. England played a little bit frantically in the first innings and offered us a lot of chances. It was nice to see our bowlers back to where they have been."

De Villiers had to contend with the taunts of the crowd after being involved in a controversial incident on Friday, where he appeared to be claiming to have caught Andrew Strauss despite replays showing he'd dropped the ball.

"AB in particular played a real man's innings," said Smith. "The pressure he walked out into from the crowd, being booed, was a credit to him."

This match was the first time England had changed their side in seven Tests with fit-again all-rounder Andrew Flintoff in for Paul Collingwood and, far more controversially, the Australia-raised Darren Pattinson making his debut as a replacement for injured fellow Nottinghamshire seamer Ryan Sidebottom.

England captain Michael Vaughan admitted Pattinson's shock late call-up did look "a confused selection".

However, Vaughan whose 50th Test as England captain, played on his Yorkshire home ground, is unlikely to rank as a career highlight, added: "The selection of one person does not lose you a Test match. We lost a Test match because we didn't play well enough. Full credit to South Africa - they went out and batted how you can bat on a Headingley pitch, and we really struggled to get them out," Vaughan admitted.

"As a batting unit, certainly the top five, we didn't bat well enough."

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