Star South Africa back Cheslin Kolbe broke his jaw in a 29-24 third test victory over New Zealand, head coach Rassie Erasmus said on Saturday.
The 32-year-old double Rugby World Cup-winning wing was switched to fullback for the match in Johannesburg after a hamstring injury ruled out Damian Willemse.
He was forced off after only 10 minutes of a match which ended with the Springboks taking a 2-1 lead in the four-test series.
Kolbe was not the only star forced to make a first-half departure.
New Zealand captain and No 8 Ardie Savea scored two tries, then sustained a shoulder injury, which has ruled him out of the series finale in American city Baltimore next Saturday.
"It was a fierce battle in all departments. I think the scoreboard shows how close the game was. We are just happy we won," Erasmus told reporters.
"All of us, I think, envy the way they (All Blacks) handle the ball. None of us can say they are not going to keep the ball alive and play to their strength.
"It is massive. The teams are No 1 and two in the world. One week it is them, one week it is us. It certainly (matches) the build-up.
"I do not think we dominated the scrums. I think we mauled exceptionally. We really love scrums, but we love mauling as well.
"I think there were contrasting styles. We play this way and they play that way. Sometimes we win and sometimes they do."
New Zealand head coach Dave Rennie said: "We were able to play a high-tempo first half, and we saw a lot of their big men struggling.
"In the second half, we made a few errors, which slowed the game down to a scrum, then often a penalty and some field position for them.
"Just after we had the lead (17-12), they sort of dominated us in set pieces and won all the scrums and had all the momentum.
"They (Springboks) played a bit of footy tonight. We probably made a few errors that allowed them to do so.
"I thought they were a lot stronger in that area than they had been in the first two games," he added.
After receiving the player-of-the-match award, South Africa wing Ethan Hooker said: "We try to focus a lot more on ourselves rather than our opponents."