Inglis century and Starc strikes hand Australia control on Day 3 in Cape Town
Josh Inglis scored a century and Mitchell Starc, supported by Nathan Lyon, removed key South African batters as Australia seized control on Day 3 of the third Test at Newlands in Cape Town on Thursday; South Africa closed at 140 for 4 in their second innings, leading Australia by 40 runs.
Australia had begun the day on 330 for 4 and extended their first innings to 429, taking a lead of exactly 100 runs before bowling South Africa out of immediate dominance; the series is level at 1-1 and the winner of the Cape Town Test will also secure the top spot in the Test world rankings.
Inglis and Alex Carey rebuilt Australia's innings with a fifth-wicket stand of 185, and Inglis reached his second Test hundred off 132 balls while Carey finished on 80; Simon Harmer then removed both batters in quick succession to give South Africa a route back into the innings.
The South African attack made further inroads into Australia's lower order as Rabada trapped Pat Cummins lbw for a duck and Coetzee dismissed Starc, but contributions from Josh Connolly (29), Nathan Lyon and Josh Hazlewood pushed the total to 429; Harmer finished with four wickets for 104 and Jansen took three for 60.
South Africa's second innings began poorly when Starc had Temba Markram caught at mid-off for one, and Hazlewood then accounted for Kyle Verreynne Bedingham for 11 with Lyon taking the catch; Ackerman and Bavuma put together 64 for the third wicket to steady the reply.
Ackerman followed his first-innings 95 with 62 off 80 balls before Starc induced a top edge that Cameron Green took at slip; Ackerman wanted a review but the time to signal had expired, and Starc's two wickets on the day took his match tally to eight.
In the penultimate over of play, Lyon had captain Temba Bavuma bowled for 35 after the batter had faced 115 balls, leaving South Africa 140 for 4 with Matthew Breetzke unbeaten on 19 and Rickelton on eight; Lyon's ability to find sharp turn on a surface that is beginning to offer more to spinners was highlighted during the day.
Inglis said, "Australia would ideally like to restrict South Africa's lead to around 200 runs, although the eventual target will depend on how much the hosts can add." Australia will have a new ball available after the first hour of the fourth day, with Starc and Hazlewood expected to make use of it while Lyon remains a threat if the surface continues to grip.
