A very good series with one very, very bad day in Wellington.
New Zealand's brave effort to stave off a home series defeat against South Africa ended with rain abandoning play on the final day of the third and deciding Test in Hamilton.
The Black Caps were in a strong position to level the series with the visitors 5-80 in their second innings, after leading by 175 runs in the first innings.
New Zealand needed to win the match after losing the second Test in Wellington, with the first clash also rain-affected and ending in a draw.
"Against one of the best sides you can't afford to have an off-day like the day we had in Wellington, because you give a team like South Africa an inch and they run with it - that was perhaps a little frustrating," Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson told reporters.
"We did try to look at it a little bit holistically and see it as a bad day, which it was, a game-defining day, but it was one day so it was important we put that behind us."
Williamson lauded his troops' performances with South Africa on the ropes, particularly those of second-string bowling trio Neil Wagner, Matt Henry and de Grandhomme, but admitted there'd be plenty of what-ifs in the week ahead.
"A very good side and great series to be a part of, they deserve the win but it's unfortunate to not see how this day unfolded," Williamson said.
"(We had) a relatively inexperienced bowling attack and the guys were superb for a long period of time, and very demanding.
"Adding all those things up, and adding one of the best sides in the world into that mix, I thought it was a really good series with a bad day's cricket."
With the rain showing no signs of abating and due to the atrocious day-five conditions at Seddon Park, umpires Bruce Oxenford and Rod Tucker called an early draw on Wednesday.
Proteas linchpins Faf du Plessis and Quinton de Kock remained at the crease at the end of a sunny day four, but the early removal of either batsman on Wednesday would've further strengthened the Kiwi cause.
And the South Africans knew that.
There was a lot of rain predicted for this game but I wasn't expecting it today," du Plessis said.
"I was ready to come out and play my block-a-thon.
"It's fair to say New Zealand outplayed us in this game ... and they can count themselves very unlucky.
"They outplayed us in every department and we got saved by the rain."
The series loss means the Black Caps also lose their world No.5 Test ranking.
