Australia were 124 for 6 at Kingsmead, and Renshaw and Cummins took them to 187 before the light went
Jansen, Mulder and Nortje took two wickets each on day one of the first Test in Durban, before a seventh-wicket stand steadied Australia.
Oct 9, 2026
Australia lost two wickets in four balls either side of lunch on Friday, and then two more in three balls in the afternoon. At 124 for 6 on the first day of the first Test at Kingsmead, Pat Cummins’ decision to bat looked a poor one. Matt Renshaw and Cummins then added an unbeaten 63, and Australia were 187 for 6 when bad light ended play with only 65.2 overs bowled.
Renshaw finished on 46 not out from 115 balls, four short of a fifty. Cummins had 33 from 72.
Mulder and Jansen do the early damage
Kagiso Rabada, a late call after a hamstring injury, was not in South Africa’s XI, and Lungi Ngidi is out with a hamstring problem of his own. It did not show. Wiaan Mulder got Travis Head in the eighth over, caught down the leg side by Kyle Verreynne after Temba Bavuma reviewed, and Australia were 17 for 1.
Nic Maddinson, in his first Test in almost ten years, lasted 33 balls without scoring. Marco Jansen bowled him in the 11th over, the ball taking a thick inside edge off an attempted cut and going on to the off stump.
Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith put on 60 for the third wicket, Smith hitting Keshav Maharaj for two sixes in one over. Mulder ended it with the last ball of the session, trapping Labuschagne lbw for 37. Labuschagne reviewed and lost. Three balls after lunch Smith edged Jansen to Mulder in the gully for 25, and 84 for 2 had become 84 for 4.
Nortje’s double strike
Anrich Nortje, playing his first Test in three and a half years, struck twice in the 42nd over. Alex Carey edged to Aiden Markram at second slip for 14, and two balls later Beau Webster went for 4, caught behind on another South African review.
Jansen finished with 2 for 35 from 16 overs, seven of them maidens. Mulder took 2 for 31 and Nortje 2 for 40. The spinners, Simon Harmer and Maharaj, went without a wicket in 21 overs between them.
Renshaw and Cummins dig in
Renshaw has been in and out of the Test side since he first played in 2016, and he came back as an opener against Bangladesh in August. Here he batted at five and took his time over it: three fours in 115 balls. Cummins hit five at the other end. After two collapses in one day, a stand that simply stayed together was worth more to Australia than a quick one.
The light was failing by the final session. The umpires brought out the light meters, took the players off, and after a wait called the day off without another ball.
Australia have Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon and Josh Hazlewood still to bat. South Africa will want the last four wickets quickly on Saturday morning, before Renshaw and Cummins take the game away from them.