Australia and South Africa begin the third and deciding Test at Newlands in Cape Town on Tuesday 27 October with the series level at 1-1, and first ball is at 10.30am local time, which is 7.30pm AEDT, according to cricket.com.au.
Australia won the first Test in Durban, and South Africa levelled the series in Gqeberha with a win by an innings and 31 runs, cricket.com.au reported. Australia were all out for 99 in their first innings in Gqeberha, according to The Guardian.
prw reported the Durban result on 14 October and previewed the second Test in Gqeberha on 18 October.
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Australia’s Selection Calls
Australia’s squad is Pat Cummins (captain), 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 and Beau Webster, according to cricket.com.au.
Nic Maddinson and Sam Harper were released from the squad on Monday 26 October, the eve of the match, to play Sheffield Shield cricket, the site reported.
Cameron Green, who had an abdominal strain, and Josh Inglis, who had a broken finger, are fit and available, and Green will not bowl if selected, cricket.com.au reported. Head coach Andrew McDonald has said Green is unlikely to bowl in the series, according to The Guardian.
Steve Smith had a stiff neck throughout the Gqeberha Test but is expected to be fine to play, according to cricket.com.au.
A vacancy is widely expected at the top of the order to partner Travis Head, The Guardian reported. Moving Matthew Renshaw back to opener is one option, and Marnus Labuschagne opening is another.
Labuschagne has averaged 22.09 in 47 innings since his last Test century, according to The Guardian. His Test average, which was above 61 in late 2022, stands at 43.36.
Australia again face a choice between Scott Boland and Nathan Lyon, cricket.com.au reported. Captain Pat Cummins spoke of fitting “five match-winners into four slots”.
South Africa Without Nortje
Anrich Nortje bowled 3.3 overs in Gqeberha before a groin injury and has been ruled out of the rest of the series, cricket.com.au reported. His omission was the only change to the South African squad, and Gerald Coetzee, Dane Paterson and Corbin Bosch are options to replace him.
South Africa’s squad is Temba Bavuma (captain), Marques Ackerman, David Bedingham, Corbin Bosch, Matthew Breetzke, Gerald Coetzee, Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Senuran Muthusamy, Dane Paterson, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton and Kyle Verreynne, according to cricket.com.au.
Kagiso Rabada has 52 career Test wickets at Newlands, the site reported.
Australia’s Newlands Test Record
Newlands sits at the foot of Table Mountain and has hosted Test cricket since the late 1800s, according to cricket.com.au.
Australia have won 10 of their 14 Tests at the ground, but South Africa have won three of the past four matches between the sides there, the site reported. Since 2020, fast bowlers have taken 84 wickets at Newlands to nine for spin.
Australia have not lost consecutive Tests since the first two Tests of the 2023 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, according to cricket.com.au, and they have not lost a bilateral Test series since early 2023, The Guardian reported.
Australia remain on top of the World Test Championship standings, with South Africa third, according to cricket.com.au.
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First Ball at 7.30pm
Play is scheduled from 7.30pm to 9.30pm AEDT, then 10.10pm to 12.10am and 12.30am to 2.30am, with an extra 30 minutes available to complete the overs, cricket.com.au reported.
The match is broadcast in Australia on Kayo and Fox Cricket, with radio coverage on ABC and SEN. The Test is scheduled to run from 27 to 31 October.
The answers to the Boland or Lyon question, and to who opens with Head, will come in Australia’s XI for the decider.
Sources: cricket.com.au, “South Africa v Australia, third Test: match preview”, 26 October 2026 (https://www.cricket.com.au/news/4597818/south-africa-v-australia-third-test-match-preview-guide-cape-town-newlands-broadcast-details-how-to-watch-team-news-session-start-times-2026); The Guardian, “Winds of change are coming for Australia as selection storm brews in South Africa”, 24 October 2026 (https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2026/oct/24/australia-cricket-team-third-test-selection-dilemmas)
Photo: Reflexio, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Ryan Harris bowls to Morne Morkel at Newlands in March 2014, on the way to Australia’s third Test win and series victory in Cape Town.
