South Africa Beat Australia to Clinch Test Series
South Africa beat Australia by 176 runs in the third Test at Newlands on Saturday, clinching the three-match series 2-1 and moving to the top of the ICC Test rankings. Chasing 288 for victory on the final day in Cape Town, Australia were bowled out for 111 in 57.1 overs.
Off-spinner Simon Harmer took a career-best 6 for 16 in the second innings and finished with a 10-wicket match haul, earning the Player of the Match award. Fast bowler Kagiso Rabada took 3 for 39 and reached 350 Test wickets during the match, becoming the fastest bowler by balls bowled to reach the landmark.
How South Africa beat Australia on the final day
Australia’s chase fell apart in the first half hour. Rabada removed opener Matt Renshaw for nought and Marnus Labuschagne for four in the first over of the innings, with only five runs on the board. Travis Head made 14 before falling to Rabada as well, and first-innings centurion Josh Inglis was run out for four while attempting a quick single.
From there, Harmer took charge. He claimed the last six wickets of the innings, exploiting the conditions expertly as Australia collapsed to 62 for 8. Cameron Green held out longest among the top order, making 27 from 110 balls before Harmer bowled him on the first delivery of the 39th over.
Pat Cummins, the Australia captain, and Nathan Lyon delayed the end with a ninth-wicket stand of 45 runs that lasted more than 17 overs. Lyon finished unbeaten on 33, the top score of the innings, while Cummins made 11 from 90 balls. Harmer eventually trapped Cummins leg before wicket and then bowled Josh Hazlewood for nought to seal the win.
Harmer finished with match figures of 10 for 120, his first 10-wicket haul in Test cricket. He became the third South African spinner to take 10 wickets in a Test against Australia, after Charlie Llewellyn in Johannesburg in 1902 and Hugh Tayfield in Melbourne in 1952, and the first South African spinner to do so at Newlands.
Rabada’s 350th Test wicket came in 13,808 deliveries, fewer than compatriot Dale Steyn’s 14,719 and Pakistan’s Waqar Younis with 14,905.
A series that turned after the first Test
South Africa’s win completed a comeback in the series. Australia won the first Test, but South Africa won the second game by an innings and then sealed the decider in Cape Town. Feature Pakistan followed the series through its closing stages, including Australia’s push for victory on day three in Cape Town and Ryan Rickelton and Wiaan Mulder’s centuries that set Australia 288 to win.
The final Test itself swung on the second innings. Australia had taken a 100-run first-innings lead, scoring 429 against South Africa’s 329. South Africa replied with 387 in their second innings, built on Rickelton’s 101 and Mulder’s 115 and a 154-run sixth-wicket stand between the pair. That left Australia chasing 288, a target they never threatened after the early collapse.
Earlier in the series, Feature Pakistan reported on the second day’s play in Cape Town, when Australia were building their first-innings lead.
What the win means for the rankings
Frequently asked questions
What was the margin of victory in the third Test?
South Africa won by 176 runs. Australia, chasing 288, were bowled out for 111 in 57.1 overs on the final day at Newlands in Cape Town.
What were Simon Harmer’s figures in the match?
Harmer took 6 for 16 in the second innings and finished with match figures of 10 for 120, his first 10-wicket haul in Test cricket. He was named Player of the Match.
What was the final series score?
South Africa won the three-match series 2-1. Australia won the first Test, South Africa won the second by an innings, and South Africa won the third by 176 runs.
What did the result mean for the Test rankings?
South Africa moved above Australia to the top of the ICC Test rankings for the first time since January 2016. The win also kept alive their hopes of defending the World Test Championship title.
