Dale Steyn took a limited-overs career-best 5-50 as India collapsed from 267-1 to 296 all out in 48.4 overs.
India looked set to reach 350 comfortably on a near-perfect batting strip, but all of India's batsmen appeared to think batting was as easy as Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag made it look.
Tendulkar, whose knock of 111 was his 48th century in one-day internationals, featured in century partnerships with Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir that dominated a highly-rated bowling attack early on.
Sehwag struck 73 and Gambhir 69 but the early batting effort could not be built on because of a collapse triggered during the batting powerplay taken in the 39th over.
Steyn, not impressive in his opening spell, ripped through the batting starting with Gambhir.
While Gambhir and Yusuf Pathan gave away their wickets trying to go for runs, Steyn simply tormented the batsmen to follow in a clever spell of bowling in which he bowled yorkers and slower deliveries.
India lost its last nine wickets in only nine overs starting from Tendulkar's dismissal.
Tendulkar, who is now only one century away from completing 100 international hundreds, went for his strokes from the start.
A pulled six off Steyn set the tempo and he went on to hit two more sixes and eight fours off 101 balls.
Tendulkar added 142 runs off 107 balls with Virender Sehwag, building their first century stand of the tournament a day after captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni asked for bigger partnerships from the openers.
South African skipper Graeme Smith took the bowling powerplay when the pair was in full flow, having scored 87 in the first 10 overs. Another 41 runs came in the next five as the batsmen took turns to dominate the bowling.
Sehwag started with his trademark four off the first delivery of the match. The boundary off Dale Steyn was the fifth consecutive time the opener had struck the first ball to the fence in this World Cup, having done so in all previous matches against Bangladesh, England, Ireland and the Netherlands.
Sehwag survived a chance immediately after that four, as wicketkeeper Morne van Wyk did not react to an edge induced by Steyn. Sehwag was let off behind the stumps once more on 70, off spinner Johan Botha.
The hard-hitting opener once took three fours off a Morne Morkel over and raced to his 37th half-century off 44 deliveries. He was out after striking 12 fours off 66 balls to part-time leg-spinner Faf du Plessis, moving towards leg and edging a straight delivery on to the stumps.
Tendulkar then added 125 runs with Gautam Gambhir, who struck seven fours off 75 balls.
But the two batsmen fell in quick succession in what was to turn into a dramatic collapse.
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