South Africa vs Australia 3rd Test: Start Time, Newlands Venue and Squads

Updated October 26, 2026: South Africa and Australia are scheduled to meet in the third men’s Test at Newlands in Cape Town from Tuesday, October 27 through Saturday, October 31. Cricket South Africa lists Day 1 for 10:30 a.m. South African Standard Time in Cape Town (SAST, UTC+02:00), which is 08:30 UTC. The series is tied 1–1, so this is the decider. The toss and final playing XIs have not been announced in the official match center as of this update.

South Africa vs Australia third Test: quick facts

Schedule, venue, and playing conditions

The fixture remains scheduled as a five-day Test, with play listed from October 27 to October 31. The confirmed Day 1 start is 10:30 a.m. in Cape Town, or 08:30 UTC. The time is tied to the match date and the venue’s stated time zone; it is not a publication or update timestamp. Cricket South Africa’s current event listing uses the sponsored name YesPlay Newlands Cricket Ground, while Cricket Australia’s match page identifies the ground as Newlands Cricket Ground, Cape Town. Both listings point to Newlands in Cape Town.

No day-of-match toss, final XI, or official match-day pitch report was available in the match center at the time of this update. Pre-match discussion about selection or the surface should not be mistaken for a confirmed team sheet or a formal playing-conditions announcement. Test cricket can finish before the fifth scheduled day if a result is reached, while weather or other interruptions can affect the amount of play; the listed end date is the schedule, not a guarantee that all five days will be used.

For a time check, use both labels together: Tuesday, October 27, 10:30 a.m. SAST (Cape Town, UTC+02:00) equals 08:30 UTC. Cricket Australia’s match center lists the third Test for October 27–31; its live fixture page and Cricket South Africa’s schedule are the primary pages to recheck before play. Readers following from another country should convert from UTC using their location’s offset for October 27 rather than applying a current offset to a different date.

Why the third Test decides the series

Australia won the first Test at Kingsmead in Durban by 214 runs. South Africa responded in the second Test at St George’s Park in Gqeberha, winning by an innings and 31 runs. Those confirmed results leave the three-Test series level at 1–1 going into Cape Town. The third match therefore decides which side finishes ahead if either team wins; a draw would leave the series tied.

The two results also explain why a series-level summary matters more than reading the Cape Town fixture alone. Australia began with a win, South Africa leveled the contest, and there is no fourth Test listed in this series. The final match is not a separate playoff: it is the scheduled third Test, with the series outcome determined by the completed match results.

Both teams have already shown they can produce a decisive result in this tour. Australia’s Durban win came by a substantial margin, and South Africa’s Gqeberha victory was an innings win. Those scorelines set the stakes, but they do not predict the conditions or the outcome at Newlands.

Latest squad update and what is still unknown

Cricket Australia’s latest pre-match report says Nic Maddinson and reserve wicketkeeper Sam Harper have been released from Australia’s Test squad. The report says Australia will make at least one change to its XI for the decider. It identifies Matthew Renshaw as a likely option to open. Cameron Green and Josh Inglis appear in the current squad list; Cricket Australia separately reports Inglis is in contention to play as a batter while recovering from a finger fracture, and says Smith was due to undergo a fitness check at match-eve training. These are selection updates and possibilities; they do not confirm Australia’s final eleven.

The latest squad list published alongside the team update includes the following players:

• South Africa: Temba Bavuma (captain), Marques Ackerman, David Bedingham, Corbin Bosch, Gerald Coetzee, Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Senuran Muthusamy, Dane Paterson, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, and Kyle Verreynne.
• Australia: 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.

A squad is a group of available players, not the eleven selected to play. The toss and final team announcements are expected closer to the start, so check the match center again on October 27 before relying on a projected lineup. The Australian update is especially relevant because it narrows the available group after the earlier squad lists included Maddinson and Harper.

How to follow the toss, playing XIs, score, and result

Use the official Cricket Australia match center for fixture CA:39992 for the toss, confirmed teams, scorecard, commentary, and match result. Its current status is upcoming. Once the toss and teams are posted, the Match Info and teams sections are the places to verify who is playing; a squad list or a reporter’s possible XI is not the same confirmation.

The Cricket Australia series page links the fixtures and series record. For the local schedule and venue label, consult Cricket South Africa’s upcoming fixtures or its third-Test event listing. The event’s official ticket page also identifies Day 1 at YesPlay Newlands at 10:30 a.m.

For Australian viewers, Cricket Australia lists Kayo Sports and Fox Cricket as the tour’s broadcast options. Rights differ by country, so viewers elsewhere should check the broadcaster carrying international cricket in their own market. The official match center is the direct route for live score updates regardless of broadcast access.

At the time of writing, the third Test is still upcoming: no toss, final playing XIs, live score, or result has been posted. The key confirmed details are the 1–1 series score, Newlands in Cape Town, the October 27–31 schedule, and the 10:30 a.m. SAST (08:30 UTC) Day 1 start. Return to the match center on match day for the information that can only be confirmed once the teams arrive for the toss.