India hold on against South Africa

Instead the hosts managed just three wickets in Cape Town after stubborn resistance from Gautam Gambhir (64 from 184 balls), Rahul Dravid (31 from 112) and the unbeaten Sachin Tendulkar (14 from 91) helped the tourists secure a first ever shared series in a country where they had lost all four previous visits.

Chasing an unlikely 340 for victory, the world No 1 side ended on 166 for three when Smith decided to give in to the inevitable.

And the Proteas captain rued the fact that his side lacked that little bit extra to roll over the Indians in what he described as a "terrific series".

"It was a great series all round," he said. "I think every day and every session was really competitive. Our last three series against India, two over there and one here have all been one-all, so I think the teams are very even and that shows how competitive the cricket is.

"As a team we managed to compete really well with the best team in the world.

"We just didn't have enough to close it off today, unfortunately, but I think if we can just build on the blocks that we've had in place then we can look to take ourselves forward nicely."

India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni was pleased with the way his side fought back in the second and third games.

After being humbled by an innings and 25 runs in the first Test at Centurion, they sealed an 87-run win in Durban, a result that proved decisive.

Dhoni said: "It was a very interesting series. As far as coming from behind is concerned, we were quite used to it... we never played the first Test match well.

"So it's really good to come back like this. We couldn't get that last effort in terms of taking the last few wickets in the second innings. At the end of the day, I think we'll be happy with our performance.

"I've always said that we have a tremendous side, who take pride in performing for India."