Early tries from Cecil Afrika and Branco du Preez gave the Blitzboks the advantage before Fiji captain Osea Kolinisau touched down to halve the deficit at The Sevens Stadium.

Fiji then levelled the thrilling encounter at 14-14 just after the restart thanks to Jerry Tuwai but South African edged back in front through Chris Dry.

It proved to be the crucial moment as it knocked the wind out of Fijian sails, with Seabelo Senatla’s 11th try of the tournament rounding off a superb performance from the South African side.

"We just needed to stick to our game plan and structure and that's exactly what the guys did," South Africa captain Philip Snyman said.

"We never let Fiji into the game and then they were playing catch-up rugby, which I think worked to our advantage.

"We can be positive going into our home tournament next weekend in Cape Town, but we need to start all over again and fix a few things that went wrong.

"We need to recover well over the next few days."

England took home the bronze medals as they recorded a 33-10 victory over Wales, who enjoyed a surprise run to the last four.

Australia overcame Scotland 19-12 to finish fifth, while the United States secured the Challenge Trophy by beating Samoa 28-14.

South Africa, runners-up behind Fiji on the overall standings last season, reached the final in Dubai by overpowering Wales 36-5 in the last four.

Senatla was again the star man, running in a first-half hat-trick, while Werner Kok and Justin Geduld also got their names on the scoresheet.

They had earlier inflicted a crushing 40-0 defeat on New Zealand in the quarter-finals.

Fiji and England shared four tries in the opening seven-minute period in their semi-final before the Rio 2016 gold medallists proved too strong with a blistering display after the break, eventually sealing a 31-12 success.

The Pacific nation, who saw their coach Ben Ryan step down following their Olympic triumph, booked their spot in the semi-finals with a thumping 40-5 victory over France.

The World Rugby Sevens Series is due continue in Cape Town on December 10 and 11.