Image source: Alamy Stock Photo
Australia Tour of South Africa
Test Series – Third Test
Tuesday 27 – Saturday 31 October
10:30
Newlands Cricket Ground, Cape Town
The Proteas will chase a come-from-behind series victory when they face Australia for the third and final Test, set for the Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town from Tuesday 27 to Saturday 31 October 2026.
The series is tied at 1-1 after each team claimed an emphatic victory. The tourists thumped hosts South Africa by 214 runs in the first Test in Durban, but the Proteas roared back to claim a series-levelling win by an innings and 31 runs in the second Test in Gqeberha.
South Africa’s triumph in the Eastern Cape was underpinned by a brilliant innings from captain Temba Bavuma, who scored a career best 179 to help his team recover from 110/6 to post 425/9. They then bowled Australia out in back-to-back innings – forcing the tourists to follow on after skittling them for 99, and then closing out victory by bowling them out for 295.
“I think it was very much a spirited effort from us,” said Bavuma in the wake of the victory. “A lot was asked of us after the first Test in Durban, and I think the biggest one was the character or the mentality of the team, and I think over the course of the five days we’ve definitely spoken well to that.
“So from a batting point of view, from a bowling point of view, when things got tough we managed to dig deep, stay in the game and most importantly get the result in our favour.”
However, the Proteas will be without speedster Anrich Nortje due to injury: “That’s a big loss for us,” admitted Bavuma. “We know what an extra dimension he adds to our bowling attack. I think that one we do have to take it upon ourselves that we probably took a risk by allowing Ana [Nortje] to play two games in a row.
“In terms of who might come, obviously we will go to Cape Town and see what’s happening there. You’ve got guys like Gerald [Coetzee] on the wings, Pato [Dane Paterson], as well as [Corbin] Bosch, and we have Sen [Senuran Muthusamy] as well, so the options are there.
“Whoever we decide after we get to Cape Town, we’ll be confident they form part of our best XI for those conditions.”
Australia captain Pat Cummins, meanwhile, is hoping that the resounding defeat in Gqeberha sparks a big reaction from his team: “We were nowhere near our best across the board really. [We] clearly need to be a lot better than that if we want to compete.
“I think a loss can sometimes kick yourself into gear. You can maybe paper over the cracks sometimes in a win. Whereas I think in a loss, it makes you ask questions as a player of yourself."
South Africa v Australia – Head-to-head
Test matches played: 104
SA wins: 28
Aus wins: 55
Draws: 21
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