Most heavy defeats result in feelings of great disappointment and misery but India's victory in Kanpur left us feeling only the disappointment, not the misery. There is too much for us to feel proud about over a long and relentless season and, besides, India outplayed us in extreme conditions and deserved their win.
South Africa have played 12 Test matches since October and have won eight of them. We have also won 16 out of 19 one-day matches and six out of eight Twenty20s. There is no disgrace in being beaten by India in our final match of the season.
Actually, it was a fabulous Test series with some outstanding cricket played by both sides. Although the pitch in Chennai was never going to produce a result, none of us will ever forget Viru's triple-century. Ahmedabad provided the best pitch (excuse my bias!) and I believe we produced one of South Africa's best Test performances since our return to international cricket.
As I said before the third Test, India gambled on the pitch and it worked for them. It was an extreme gamble which could easily have backfired and cost them their world ranking as number two behind Australia. But you have to admire a sportsman who is prepared to lose in order to win.
Clearly, after their Ahmedabad humiliation, India were never going to condone another 'good' pitch in Kanpur and it made sense to have a dry and cracked one in order to give Harbhajan as much assistance as possible. We had no complaints before the match and we have none after. I just wish we had managed another 50 runs in our first innings because then we might have had a great finish.
We leave India with many happy thoughts and memories. Neil McKenzie and Hashim Amla have given the top order a feel of great stability while AB de Villiers has turned the corner and can now combine his dashing brilliance to reliable 'fighter' when we need him.
On the slightly less positive side was the venue. It is a shame that South Africa keep being scheduled to play in Kanpur. There are a number of ICC stipulations that apply to Test match venues and I'm afraid Kanpur falls short of meeting them.
When India travel to South Africa we regard the tourists as world leaders and deserving of the best we can offer. India always play at out best venues and nothing in the way of hospitality is spared. I have no desire to criticise the city, but it became very obvious to me that nobody seems to enjoy coming here – not the Indian team, the local media or anybody from the BCCI.
The life of a professional cricketer may appear to be a glamorous one, but it often requires nine months away from home in many years. It is essential to be able to 'move about' and 'get away' from your hotel room. That doesn't seem possible in Kanpur, never mind the practice and player facilities at the ground. I apologise sincerely if this offends Kanpurites, but I'm afraid this is amongst the least popular venues in international cricket.
But it was a thrilling Test match! (Gameplan)
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