Australia and South Africa share an iconic cricket rivalry that has produced high-scoring thrillers, fiery pace battles, elite batting performances, and memorable moments that defined entire eras. Here you will find official scorecards, match summaries, iconic records, decade-wise trends and expert insights relating to this battle for supremacy.
Tim David had high hopes of repeating his 23-ball century from Darwin but managed only two fours as Australia struggled to chase 179 runs, as seen in the Australian Men‚äôs Cricket Team Vs South Africa National Cricket Team Match Scorecard.
| Match No. | Match & Format | Venue | Australia Score | South Africa Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia vs South Africa, ODI | Cairns | 179 all out | 277/8 | South Africa won by 98 runs |
| 2 | Australia vs South Africa, ODI | Mackay | 225/9 | 229/6 | South Africa won by 4 wickets |
| 3 | Australia vs South Africa, T20I | Darwin | 192/7 | 196/5 | South Africa won by 5 wickets |
| 4 | Australia vs South Africa, Test | Lord’s | 284 & 210 | 311 & 184/4 | South Africa won by 6 wickets |
| 5 | Australia vs South Africa, T20I | Cairns | 164/8 | 165/6 | South Africa won by 4 wickets |
Australia vs South Africa
South Africa and Australia continue their tour with three One Day Internationals over six days, beginning with Cairns’ Cazalys Stadium before concluding at Mackay with three matches over six days.
South Africa have an excellent record in north Queensland city; their Proteas defeated New Zealand 3-0 during 2022 Chappell Hadlee Trophy competition before winning two ODIs there in 2003.
Wallabies have struggled against Proteas in ODI cricket over recent times, winning only three out of eleven matches over this format – which includes their Champions Trophy semi-final defeat to England, British and Irish Lions three match series defeat and Pakistan one-off game during their last home summer.
South Africa will look to build on their impressive 98-run victory in the opening ODI and make it four consecutive victories over Australia in this format. South Africa’s Springbok batting looks particularly formidable and could pose serious problems for Australia’s Wallabies in this match-up.
Keshav Maharaj excelled with the ball during India’s win in Australia, bowling a five-wicket spell to set them on their way. To remain effective during their tour, they must maintain that level of performance if they wish to counter Australians’ threats effectively.
Australia have some serious doubts over their top order, with Mitchell Marsh and Shaun Marsh both finding form challenging in ODI cricket. A strong performance by wicketkeeper-batsman Tim Paine could prove essential if Australia want to return to contention for top four places in this competition.
The Wallabies made one change to their team that won their thrilling Test championship final against the Lions: veteran pace bowler James O’Connor returned in place of Tom Lynagh who suffered a concussion during their victory.
O’Connor could prove pivotal as hosts risk falling behind in this one-day series; also there remains uncertainty around batting where there are both young unproven players as well as experienced journeymen present on this roster.
ODI
ODI cricket is the premier limited overs competition on an international stage, typically between teams who hold full ICC membership status and can last up to seven hours.
Each match contains a fixed number of overs with the winner determined by scoring more runs during that timeframe.
South Africa will look to rebound from an underwhelming T20I series against Australia with a solid showing in their three-match ODI series starting August 19. Cairns Cazalys Stadium will host the first game, before Mackay Great Barrier Reef Arena hosts two further matches between August 22-24.
Though South Africa were ultimately defeated 2-1 in their T20I series, many promising young South African players showed promise during this matchup.
Kwena Maphaka made quite an impression during this series at 19 years old; his performance earned him inclusion into South Africa’s ODI squad; additionally, Kwena became only player from any full member country to take four wickets during an T20I!
He will join fellow pacemen Lhuan-dre Pretorius and Nqaba Peter in the Proteas’ one-off ODI side, but key experienced figures like Heinrich Klaasen and Glenn Maxwell will not feature for this encounter. Temba Bavuma will captain his side and oversee an attack comprising spinner Keshav Maharaj and Test triple-centurion Matthew Breetzke as bowlers.
Marnus Labuschagne will also feature, having played an instrumental role in South Africa’s T20 series win in Cairns. In particular, his brilliant catch of Dewald Brevis in the final match proved decisive.
Both sides will look to take control of this series, with the winner qualifying for participation at the 2025 Champions Trophy in Sri Lanka.
Australia are likely favourites and may complete a clean sweep against New Zealand in Cairns; Australia have previously done this when competing in ODIs held there in 2022 Chappell-Hadlee Trophy competition held there.
T20I
The Proteas will look to exact revenge against Australia when they meet for the second T20I of the series on Saturday in Darwin. Following that matchup, South Africa will play three ODIs across Darwin, Cairns and Mackay to complete its white-ball tour.
South African captain Aiden Markram will lead his side, with Temba Bavuma returning as T20I captain; Hollywoodbets Dolphins off-spinner Prenelan Subrayen earning his maiden call-up due to his impressive campaign which saw him wining both T20I and ODI Championship titles with his Dolphins teammates this season.
Australia come into this match in confident spirits after dominating West Indies by five wickets in the Caribbean T20Is last month and are also on track to break into the top four of ICC T20I rankings.
However, they will face off against a powerful South African side who have won all three Twenty20 Internationals so far and look like making the World Cup semifinals for the first time since 2024. Both sides should battle hard for one of four top-four positions.
One thing is certain – the winner of this match will become world champions in T20I format. T20 cricket is an intense yet fast-paced form of cricket which is popular for international tournaments as well as domestic leagues like IPL and Big Bash League. T20 matches typically feature 20 overs per side and are played between pairs of teams.
Both teams boast formidable batsmen and bowlers; South Africa have potency with Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi as quick bowlers; Australia have Mitchell Marsh, David Warner, Pat Cummins in their ranks as well as Nathan Lyon regaining fitness after recovering from knee injury.
Australia will need to put forth their best effort if they hope to defeat South Africa at T20I level, having lost all previous matches since 2024. They hope that breaking that trend and finally taking home the trophy may finally bring about victory for them.
Test
One of the sport’s fiercest rivalries will resume at Lord’s on Saturday as Australia attempts to defend their World Test Championship mace. Australia have plenty of experience and are confident after their dominating win in 2023 final. Meanwhile South Africa hope to end their 27-year ICC trophy drought and chase history at every step.
Proteas victory would see them become only the third team ever to successfully defend their title, yet they are the only side who have lost a Test in this two-year cycle – their most recent Test being heartbreakingly lost against India back in December.
This match will last five innings with an optional sixth innings being available if necessary. Australia will be greatly strengthened by the return of pace bowler Pat Cummins who missed both previous Tests due to back pain; his replacement Xavier Bartlett performed admirably while Pat was absent; but Cummins will add significant momentum towards Australian victory.
Both sides possess potency on the offensive, with South Africa led by towering left-armer Marco Jansen and young all-rounder Wiaan Mulder.
Australia boasts Josh Hazlewood’s ability to break partnerships aided by leg-spinner Adam Zampa who will replace injured Nathan Lyon.
Australia’s batting has struggled in recent times, yet their top order contains power hitters who could prove pivotal to winning this Test match.
Their middle order relies heavily on creative stroke play that could prove critical to victory; keeping an eye on Proteas spin threats may help Australia maintain their momentum during Powerplay periods.
South Africa’s middle order may have faltered recently, but their openers have been on fire in recent games. Aiden Markram in particular has been outstanding with an unbeaten 175 in the second Test and a century in the series finale; fellow opener David Miller should look to continue his impressive form after scoring an unbeaten 71 during his debut Test performance.