4
1lb
0
0
0
0
= 5
Match Details
AUS vs SA, 1st Test, AUS vs SA 2026 summary
SA 284
206-10(86.5)
Australia won by 214 runs 🏆
390
AUS
(58.0)314-6 d
+
P'ship : 0(0)
10:27
Hazlewood Destroys SA! Bavuma Suffers First Test Loss as Captain | 1st Test Highlights…
29:49Renshaw, Hazlewood Put Australia in Command | Day 4 Highlights…
5:00Australia tighten their grip after bowling SA out | Day 3 Highlights…
12:18A Knock to Remember! Renshaw’s Epic 190 Lifts Australia | Day 2 Highlights…
14:45Australia put up 187/6 on board | 1st Test, Day 1 Highlights…
The bail-swapping…
This is what Shukri Conrad…
Josh Hazlewood reflects on his…
Hazlegod turned the game around…
Hazlewood gets the job done for…
Australia wrap up a…
South Africa have suffered a…
South Africa in deep trouble!…
Aiden Markram brings up his…
David Bedingham falls short of…
Commentary
All
Highlights
Overs
W
6s
4s
Inn 1
Inn 2
Inn 3
Inn 4
Milestone
For now, this is Pritam Dey signing off on behalf of my co-commentators Akshay Bhide and Ninaad Dixit who, along with scorer/analyst Yogesh Kumar & statistician Aman brought all the updates of the final day's play. Stay tuned for more cricketing action from around the world. BYE BYE👋
A commanding all-round performance from the Aussies to kick off the series in style. The action now shifts to St George’s Park in Gqeberha for the 2nd Test, which gets underway on the 18th of October. Do join us for that.
What a performance from Australia! They have certainly exacted their revenge on the Proteas after suffering defeat in the 2025 World Test Championship Final at the Home of Cricket. Matt Renshaw enjoyed a dream outing with with both bat and ball, playing a defining role in Australia’s dominant victory, while Josh Hazlewood produced a sensational spell in the second innings to register the best figures of his Test career.
Shukri Conrad [South Africa Head Coach]: "[Where did South Africa lose this Test?] I think, obviously, you look at day one and where we had them at 130 for six [124/6], and we weren't able to shut the door there, but I thought Renshaw played extremely well. I think we, we pretty much threw everything at them, so I'm not gonna fault the bowlers in any way. I think the real disappointment for me was the batting in the first innings, on a really good wicket. Yes, a world-class attack, but I thought we, and I don't know the exact numbers, but quite a few of the guys getting starts and no one really keeping on, you know. So you're always gonna struggle 100 behind, but I'd have liked to see a bit more fight, and that probably is the disappointing bit for me.
[Is that an element of the performance that alarms you?] I don't know if it's alarming. It's concerning, but I think there, if you're gonna dive really deep into it. I don't think it's easy coming off an eight-month break. I mean, I think they came off a few months' break and got beat by Bangladesh on their return. So it sounds like an excuse, but obviously, I think we'd be better off with this run under the belts, but not alarming, not by any chance. We've got some quality players, but a few of the guys need to step up, yeah, in the batting department.
[So, we felt, watching it as sort of impassionately as we could, that everything was just a bit off, almost as if there was a rust there. And I don't just mean the batting. I even felt the bowling didn't hit the right length and line for long enough periods, the way the Aussies did, and that may have led to a certain inaccuracy that gave them escape holes] Yeah, yeah, that's fair. I think you also need to look at the makeup of the attacks. It doesn't help when one of your world-class bowlers isn't able to take the field. Then you've gotta try and fashion an attack that you feel could be effective here. I mean, Anrich's return was phenomenal and really pleasing. Wiaan is probably more effective with the new ball. So you're expecting a lot from Anrich and Marco when the ball gets older. Probably, I mean, if we were brutally honest, our spinners probably aren't as sharp as they normally are. And yeah, I think we could have exerted a little bit of ball pressure there. But it was always gonna be tough with, within a bowling attack with only three quicks of which one is a medium pacer who effectively bowls with a new ball in Wiaan. So, yeah, but a bit of rustiness, again, sounds like an excuse, but I thought that innings of Matt Renshaw was obviously the huge difference. No one else got above 50 for us, if you look at it, except Aiden.
[I think the point of the conversation is more to establish what can be done going forward. You've now got five days, six days really, to rest and rethink. I would have thought this match has done quite a lot for you to get ready for what will feel like the start of the series in some ways] You'd like to think that, but obviously we've gotta look at again what conditions PE [Port Elizabeth/Gqeberha] is potentially gonna throw up. If we can improve the side in any way. And again, look, we're obviously hopeful that KG [Kagiso Rabada] will be fit because he adds a huge dimension to our side. But not by any stretch are we a one-man band type of thing. But obviously we'll look at how we can get the best out of guys. But yes, you're right. I think we definitely will be better for this run. But again, some soft dismissals that sit in the mental corner rather than the tactical or technical, which, as I said earlier, is a bit concerning.
[There's no doubt that there's a discipline to Test match batting that is hard to adjust to on the back of a lot of white-ball cricket, but that can't be [chuckles] an excuse because it's on the menu, isn't it?] It's on the menu, and it's the same for everyone. Right? So a single-mindedness was definitely required in that second innings, and Aiden showed that. I mean, he, he backed away from his normal flamboyant self, and he did what was required to get the job done. So I think that was really the blueprint, and maybe a couple of the guys will look at themselves and do some introspection and see, well, how could they have done better?
[Okay, so let's throw forward. You hope KG's fit. Is it really only a hope, not a reality?] Well, I think it's close to a reality. But I'll continually live in hope and hopefully not die in disappointment.
[And some of the others?] Yeah, look, I mean, obviously the rest of the guys are good to go. The guys that are here: Corbin Bosch.
[The injured ones?] No one else is considered.
[What about the squad that you named for this match? Is that the squad for the series, or can you... I mean, someone like Matthew Breetzke, who people are talking about a lot, is he a candidate to play?] Yeah, he's definitely in the mix. So to answer your question, no, it's not a squad for the series, and we made that very clear to the guys that are here. Yeah, we've got a day or two, obviously, to look at. Like I said, how we can improve the side. And someone like Matthew; there's a guy like, obviously, Marques Ackerman here. We've got Senuran Muthusamy. So we got guys that are in the mix, but again, you also don't wanna go knee-jerk and get into panic mode. You need to be nice and calm, and this is when we've really gotta show our composure."
[Is that an element of the performance that alarms you?] I don't know if it's alarming. It's concerning, but I think there, if you're gonna dive really deep into it. I don't think it's easy coming off an eight-month break. I mean, I think they came off a few months' break and got beat by Bangladesh on their return. So it sounds like an excuse, but obviously, I think we'd be better off with this run under the belts, but not alarming, not by any chance. We've got some quality players, but a few of the guys need to step up, yeah, in the batting department.
[So, we felt, watching it as sort of impassionately as we could, that everything was just a bit off, almost as if there was a rust there. And I don't just mean the batting. I even felt the bowling didn't hit the right length and line for long enough periods, the way the Aussies did, and that may have led to a certain inaccuracy that gave them escape holes] Yeah, yeah, that's fair. I think you also need to look at the makeup of the attacks. It doesn't help when one of your world-class bowlers isn't able to take the field. Then you've gotta try and fashion an attack that you feel could be effective here. I mean, Anrich's return was phenomenal and really pleasing. Wiaan is probably more effective with the new ball. So you're expecting a lot from Anrich and Marco when the ball gets older. Probably, I mean, if we were brutally honest, our spinners probably aren't as sharp as they normally are. And yeah, I think we could have exerted a little bit of ball pressure there. But it was always gonna be tough with, within a bowling attack with only three quicks of which one is a medium pacer who effectively bowls with a new ball in Wiaan. So, yeah, but a bit of rustiness, again, sounds like an excuse, but I thought that innings of Matt Renshaw was obviously the huge difference. No one else got above 50 for us, if you look at it, except Aiden.
[I think the point of the conversation is more to establish what can be done going forward. You've now got five days, six days really, to rest and rethink. I would have thought this match has done quite a lot for you to get ready for what will feel like the start of the series in some ways] You'd like to think that, but obviously we've gotta look at again what conditions PE [Port Elizabeth/Gqeberha] is potentially gonna throw up. If we can improve the side in any way. And again, look, we're obviously hopeful that KG [Kagiso Rabada] will be fit because he adds a huge dimension to our side. But not by any stretch are we a one-man band type of thing. But obviously we'll look at how we can get the best out of guys. But yes, you're right. I think we definitely will be better for this run. But again, some soft dismissals that sit in the mental corner rather than the tactical or technical, which, as I said earlier, is a bit concerning.
[There's no doubt that there's a discipline to Test match batting that is hard to adjust to on the back of a lot of white-ball cricket, but that can't be [chuckles] an excuse because it's on the menu, isn't it?] It's on the menu, and it's the same for everyone. Right? So a single-mindedness was definitely required in that second innings, and Aiden showed that. I mean, he, he backed away from his normal flamboyant self, and he did what was required to get the job done. So I think that was really the blueprint, and maybe a couple of the guys will look at themselves and do some introspection and see, well, how could they have done better?
[Okay, so let's throw forward. You hope KG's fit. Is it really only a hope, not a reality?] Well, I think it's close to a reality. But I'll continually live in hope and hopefully not die in disappointment.
[And some of the others?] Yeah, look, I mean, obviously the rest of the guys are good to go. The guys that are here: Corbin Bosch.
[The injured ones?] No one else is considered.
[What about the squad that you named for this match? Is that the squad for the series, or can you... I mean, someone like Matthew Breetzke, who people are talking about a lot, is he a candidate to play?] Yeah, he's definitely in the mix. So to answer your question, no, it's not a squad for the series, and we made that very clear to the guys that are here. Yeah, we've got a day or two, obviously, to look at. Like I said, how we can improve the side. And someone like Matthew; there's a guy like, obviously, Marques Ackerman here. We've got Senuran Muthusamy. So we got guys that are in the mix, but again, you also don't wanna go knee-jerk and get into panic mode. You need to be nice and calm, and this is when we've really gotta show our composure."
Josh Hazlewood: "[Congrats, tell us about your day?] Thank you. I think it was a tough slog really. In the first session, they [South Africa] dug deep. Markram is a classy player. So, it was hard to dislodge him. I think we just had to stick at it. We knew that new ball was sort of around the corner after lunch, and it was gonna do a few tricks on a deteriorating wicket.
[We can have a look at some of your wickets. The one that was a standout: a very similar ball that knocked over the middle stump of Jansen, similar length, hit the gloves of Harmer in front of his nose] Yeah, I think from, in particular from this close end, there were a few sort of cracks and plates starting to open up a little bit, and that was, I guess, around seven or eight meters. So I was just about running in and hitting that. I think with a, with a bit harder ball, things were gonna happen. So yeah, lucky enough to get one to shoot and one to jump, so, yeah, kept me in play.
[And yourself, mate, you looked incredibly fit out there. Obviously, frustratingly, you've missed a lot of Test cricket, but you look slim, fit, and fast] Yeah, things are going pretty well. I still think, you know, before that Darwin Test match, we did a lot of work, a big training block there to sort of, I guess, get ahead of the eight ball and pay dividends down the track, which is, I guess, now. And played a bit of one-day cricket in between to keep things ticking over and, yeah, everything's feeling, feeling pretty good. Still a lot of cricket to come, but right now, feeling good.
[I think when I mentioned the big boy from Bendemeer had taken his fifth wicket, the South Africans were like, "What are you talking about?" Would the pub... And I think it was 10 past 10 local time back in Australia PM; would the pub still have been open for them to watch, or would it have shut down early?] No, no, that'd just be a Friday night if it was still open. No, not on a Tuesday. Opens early and shuts early usually, so, uh, everyone's in bed by then [laughs].
[Just tell us about some performances of some of your teammates. Matt Renshaw, the off-spinner] Matt Renshaw, the off-spinner, was, yeah, unreal. just kept throwing it out there in that pancake, in that rough that, you know, is created by a few left-armers and made life difficult for the batter. I think tall off-spinner bowling into the down breeze, it's, it's hard to get at and hard to get back. Things were happening and created a few chances.
[Nick Maddinson, you played a lot of cricket with him since, I think, under-19 level. He was under a lot of scrutiny. First ball of the second innings, hits a boundary. It was what's making you smile, I think] Yeah, I've played heaps with Madders over the years. I know how tough he is to bowl to. He's one of the hardest around the country in Australia to bowl to. Been doing it for years and I think everyone saw his bowling there at the end. He's a likeable character and a great team man, so yeah, wish him all the best for the future.
[This is obviously only one of three. What happens now? You head down the road tomorrow, get a bit of time off, and then straight back into it?] Yeah, pretty much. Yeah, it's a quick turnaround. I think four days in between, so the bowlers won't do a great deal. It'll just be loosening up, maybe two days out, and try to squeeze in a bit of golf and probably a bit of gym and get things back together for the next round.
[And a final thought on having a bowling captain. Seemed to work pretty well] Yeah, it works well. It works well. We always think pretty similarly, I think, Patty and I, and he goes through the hard work similarly to me. So, yeah, he knows what to do when, and it's working well."
[We can have a look at some of your wickets. The one that was a standout: a very similar ball that knocked over the middle stump of Jansen, similar length, hit the gloves of Harmer in front of his nose] Yeah, I think from, in particular from this close end, there were a few sort of cracks and plates starting to open up a little bit, and that was, I guess, around seven or eight meters. So I was just about running in and hitting that. I think with a, with a bit harder ball, things were gonna happen. So yeah, lucky enough to get one to shoot and one to jump, so, yeah, kept me in play.
[And yourself, mate, you looked incredibly fit out there. Obviously, frustratingly, you've missed a lot of Test cricket, but you look slim, fit, and fast] Yeah, things are going pretty well. I still think, you know, before that Darwin Test match, we did a lot of work, a big training block there to sort of, I guess, get ahead of the eight ball and pay dividends down the track, which is, I guess, now. And played a bit of one-day cricket in between to keep things ticking over and, yeah, everything's feeling, feeling pretty good. Still a lot of cricket to come, but right now, feeling good.
[I think when I mentioned the big boy from Bendemeer had taken his fifth wicket, the South Africans were like, "What are you talking about?" Would the pub... And I think it was 10 past 10 local time back in Australia PM; would the pub still have been open for them to watch, or would it have shut down early?] No, no, that'd just be a Friday night if it was still open. No, not on a Tuesday. Opens early and shuts early usually, so, uh, everyone's in bed by then [laughs].
[Just tell us about some performances of some of your teammates. Matt Renshaw, the off-spinner] Matt Renshaw, the off-spinner, was, yeah, unreal. just kept throwing it out there in that pancake, in that rough that, you know, is created by a few left-armers and made life difficult for the batter. I think tall off-spinner bowling into the down breeze, it's, it's hard to get at and hard to get back. Things were happening and created a few chances.
[Nick Maddinson, you played a lot of cricket with him since, I think, under-19 level. He was under a lot of scrutiny. First ball of the second innings, hits a boundary. It was what's making you smile, I think] Yeah, I've played heaps with Madders over the years. I know how tough he is to bowl to. He's one of the hardest around the country in Australia to bowl to. Been doing it for years and I think everyone saw his bowling there at the end. He's a likeable character and a great team man, so yeah, wish him all the best for the future.
[This is obviously only one of three. What happens now? You head down the road tomorrow, get a bit of time off, and then straight back into it?] Yeah, pretty much. Yeah, it's a quick turnaround. I think four days in between, so the bowlers won't do a great deal. It'll just be loosening up, maybe two days out, and try to squeeze in a bit of golf and probably a bit of gym and get things back together for the next round.
[And a final thought on having a bowling captain. Seemed to work pretty well] Yeah, it works well. It works well. We always think pretty similarly, I think, Patty and I, and he goes through the hard work similarly to me. So, yeah, he knows what to do when, and it's working well."
Highest Win% as Captain in Tests (Min.25 Wins):
71.92 - Steve Waugh (Australia)
63.41 - Pat Cummins (Australia)*
62.33 - Ricky Ponting (Australia)
59.09 - Steve Smith (Australia)
58.82 - Virat Kohli (India)
71.92 - Steve Waugh (Australia)
63.41 - Pat Cummins (Australia)*
62.33 - Ricky Ponting (Australia)
59.09 - Steve Smith (Australia)
58.82 - Virat Kohli (India)
Stat: Temba Bavuma’s unbeaten run as Test captain ends today, having won 11 consecutive Tests before suffering his first defeat — the most by any captain, surpassing Mike Brearley’s 10 wins before his first loss.
Most 5-Wicket Innings Haul by Australian Pacers in Tests:
29 – Glenn McGrath
23 – Dennis Lillee
19 – Mitchell Starc
16 – Graham McKenzie
15 – Josh Hazlewood*
29 – Glenn McGrath
23 – Dennis Lillee
19 – Mitchell Starc
16 – Graham McKenzie
15 – Josh Hazlewood*
Pat Cummins (Australia Captain): "[On the performance] Yeah it was great. A lot of it was built on what Matt Renshaw did on day 1 as well. He got us through that day and that got us ahead and we managed to clinch and hold onto that lead throughout the Test.
[On being a bowling captain] It makes my life a lot easier. Anywhere I look, you've got plenty of Test wickets and then even our part time is better than part timers. So I feel like I've got loads of options. But yeah, seeing particularly all the two quicks and Lyon just go to work, they've done it hundreds of times. It's always impressive.
[On contributing with both bat and ball] Really happy. I haven't played a lot of Tests over the last 18 months. That felt as good as I have. I was feeling quite fresh, and I'm glad that I got through this Test. Feel like I could have bowled more overs if we needed.
[On the 1-0 lead] It's nice. Better than the alternative. 2 games to play. Anything can happen, but once you're ahead in the series, it does make things a little bit easier. Playing away is really hard. It's great to get the confidence after a win.
[On Hazlewood] He gets a lot of raps to how consistent he is. That undersells him a little bit. He could bowl at any time. With a new ball, obviously class, but with the reversing ball, he's got so many skills. Can get the speed gun up when he wants to as well. So a captain's dream. I feel like I can bowl him at any stage."
[On being a bowling captain] It makes my life a lot easier. Anywhere I look, you've got plenty of Test wickets and then even our part time is better than part timers. So I feel like I've got loads of options. But yeah, seeing particularly all the two quicks and Lyon just go to work, they've done it hundreds of times. It's always impressive.
[On contributing with both bat and ball] Really happy. I haven't played a lot of Tests over the last 18 months. That felt as good as I have. I was feeling quite fresh, and I'm glad that I got through this Test. Feel like I could have bowled more overs if we needed.
[On the 1-0 lead] It's nice. Better than the alternative. 2 games to play. Anything can happen, but once you're ahead in the series, it does make things a little bit easier. Playing away is really hard. It's great to get the confidence after a win.
[On Hazlewood] He gets a lot of raps to how consistent he is. That undersells him a little bit. He could bowl at any time. With a new ball, obviously class, but with the reversing ball, he's got so many skills. Can get the speed gun up when he wants to as well. So a captain's dream. I feel like I can bowl him at any stage."
Temba Bavuma (South Africa Captain): "(Assessment on the Test match) Yeah, I mean, like you said, it's not the way you want to start a Test series. I think you got to give it to the Australians, with the way they dominated majority of the game. I think the way they stuck into us, even after being 120/6, they showed their experience, skill and to get themselves to a very competitive position. And I think from a lot of us who've had the experience of playing against them, you don't want to give them the opportunity to make a comeback in the game. I think we need to have a lot of questions and conversations. We can learn from the way they went about it in terms of their batting and bowling. You need to give it to them with the way they performed in this Test match.
(On things to prepare ahead of the 2nd Test for the batting group) I think the obvious one is that guys getting in and going big. That was the biggest difference. If you look at our first innings, they had Matt Renshaw, who got a big, big hundred for them and got them to a competitive score. We had a number of guys who got in, but unfortunately weren't able to get us into strong competitive positions. From a bowling front, I think you got to admire their proactive plans. They had different plans, different fields and just kind of staying in there. So, like I said, we'll have the conversations, but we'll definitely learn from how they went about their business.
(On not having a good record here in Durban) A bit hard to say, to be honest. We don't get to play a great amount of cricket here in Durban. I think the last game we played here was versus Sri Lanka where we came out on top. Before that, yes, we didn't have, I guess, the best of results. Very hard to say that. You have to pull up all the guys who played here in order to get a proper understanding."
(On things to prepare ahead of the 2nd Test for the batting group) I think the obvious one is that guys getting in and going big. That was the biggest difference. If you look at our first innings, they had Matt Renshaw, who got a big, big hundred for them and got them to a competitive score. We had a number of guys who got in, but unfortunately weren't able to get us into strong competitive positions. From a bowling front, I think you got to admire their proactive plans. They had different plans, different fields and just kind of staying in there. So, like I said, we'll have the conversations, but we'll definitely learn from how they went about their business.
(On not having a good record here in Durban) A bit hard to say, to be honest. We don't get to play a great amount of cricket here in Durban. I think the last game we played here was versus Sri Lanka where we came out on top. Before that, yes, we didn't have, I guess, the best of results. Very hard to say that. You have to pull up all the guys who played here in order to get a proper understanding."
Commentary