Quinton de Kock marked his return to international cricket in style, smashing an unbeaten 123 as South Africa crushed Pakistan by eight wickets in the second ODI in Rawalpindi on Thursday to level the three-match series 1–1.

Chasing 270, South Africa coasted home with 59 balls to spare, thanks to a fluent 153-run partnership between de Kock and Tony de Zorzi, who contributed a composed 76. Earlier, Lhuan-dre Pretorius had provided early momentum with 46 off 40 balls in an 81-run opening stand. Stand-in captain Matthew Breetzke finished unbeaten alongside de Kock as the visitors completed a near-perfect performance.

Pakistan, who had chosen to bat first, managed 269 for 9 despite a late surge from Mohammad Nawaz, whose career-best 59 came off as many balls. Salman Agha added 69, but their slow scoring rate left the innings struggling for fluency after an early collapse to 22 for 3. Left-arm seamer Nandre Burger and legspinner Nqabayomzi Peter were outstanding, claiming career-best figures of 4 for 46 and 3 for 55 respectively.

De Kock, who struck eight fours and seven sixes in his 22nd ODI century, dominated Pakistan’s attack with trademark timing and aggression.

The result sets up a decisive series finale in Faisalabad on Saturday, where South Africa will look to cap their all-format tour of Pakistan with a trophy-winning performance.