Lyon, Starc strike late after Inglis' dynamic century

Australia in firm control of the series-deciding third Test thanks to Nathan Lyon's classic off-break in the final minutes of day three Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon's late interventions on an increasingly dusty Newlands pitch ensured Australia retained control of their series decider after Josh Inglis' dynamism capped one of their best batting away performances of recent times.

South Africa hung in through the warmest afternoon of the Test thanks to a second quick-fire half-century of the game from Marques Ackerman (62 off 80). But his contentious exit to Starc, along with Lyon engineering Temba Bavuma's fourth exit to spin of the series, meant the Proteas held only a precarious 40-run advantage at stumps.

A Newlands pitch that had been pancake-flat was exploding with dust puffs after most deliveries by the third day's final hour, ample encouragement for Lyon to spin one prodigiously through Bavuma's wandering flick in a classic off-spinner's dismissal. The visitors' first-innings lead had earlier swelled to 100 thanks to Inglis' 135-ball 102 – his second Test ton coming after his eleventh-hour call-up due to Steve Smith's injury – and Alex Carey's more sedate 80 from 168 balls.

In the Pat Cummins era, Australia have bettered the 429 they managed here only five times in away Tests. Excluding first innings of Tests when they got first use of a fresh surface, this was their best score abroad in four years. The home side's counter-punch lost its potency when a venomous Starc bouncer skimmed Ackerman's top glove before clanging off the grille of his helmet and into Cameron Green's hands.

Understandably dazed, the pocket-rocket opener took all of the available 15 seconds to consider the merits of a review with Bavuma. He made the 'T' signal right as time was expiring and was rather harshly sent walking without his case being heard. It proved a moot point given television replays confirmed the glove graze.

It was Starc's eighth scalp of the match; what Cummins would give to have pinched just one of those, the paceman having not taken a wicket for 358 balls, a dry spell dating back to the end of the Durban Test. Australia's skipper has returned 0-205 in that time, though the numbers do not paint the full picture of the squeeze he helped create on Thursday to help keep SA's run-rate below three.

His tactics to defend when the ball was new in a bid to avoid another rapid start, and then attack with men around the bat when Lyon got into his groove later, also proved sound. Both Aiden Markram and David Bedingham fell victim to Australia's set-back early fields, their eyes bigger than their bats in offering Australia catching practice to leave the home side reeling at 2-35.

Travis Head rubbed his tummy as if he had just enjoyed a warm dinner when Markram punted a full Starc ball to him at mid-off, while Bedingham was caught on the square-leg boundary for the second time in three days. Ackerman used his small frame cleverly to counter the bouncers, while he and fellow shortie Bavuma survived lbw reviews from Lyon and Cummins respectively.

The former did the bulk of the scoring in their 64-run stand which survived two diabolical early quick-single calls. His team resuming on 5-330 and his own score on 85 overnight, Inglis moved into the nineties with a delectable on-drive off a Wiaan Mulder stump-seeker. It was his first scoring shot down the ground off pace.

Harmer arrived with the Western Australian one shot away from triple figures, daring him to pull out the reverse-sweep he had dominated him with the previous day. Inglis needed not to be asked twice, using his rubber wrists to drill the first ball he saw from the spinner for four, prompting a joyous roar.

He might have wished he had played the shot again three balls later, edging behind this time off Harmer, who found then found Carey's outside edge the following over; his second 'bang-bang' sequence of the Test after dismissing Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head in the same over on day one.

Cooper Connolly (29) sparred at a couple of Rabada lifters in the channel but the left-hander's cover-driving prowess, which he has flourished with in white-ball cricket this year, might have been given more of a platform if not for the flightiness of Australia's tail. The 24-year-old was unmoved by Jansen's reverse swing, shaking off a vicious bouncer that clattered into his helmet, though he perished when he was forced to up the ante as none of Australia's bowlers lasted longer than 30 balls.

Qantas tour of South Africa 2026 All matches broadcast exclusively in Australia on Kayo and Fox Cricket First Test: Australia won by 214 runs Second Test: South Africa won by an innings and 31 runs Third Test: October 27-31, Newlands, Cape Town, 7:30pm AEDT (10:30am local) South Africa Test squad: Temba Bavuma (c), Marques Ackerman, David Bedingham, Corbin Bosch, Gerald Coetzee, Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Senuran Muthusamy, Dane Paterson, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne Australia Test squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster