South Africa vs Australia 2026: all 30 player ratings

The official Player of the Series tops CricArcade's list as well. His 85 off 100 balls in Gqeberha turned 110/6 into 425/9d in a 132-run stand with Bavuma, and his 5/33 the following day bowled Australia out for 99. In the decider he made 52 in the first innings and passed 100 Test wickets when he removed Renshaw. No one mattered more across the three Tests.

A maiden ten-wicket haul when it mattered most: 4/104 and 6/16 at Newlands, closing with 21.1 overs, 14 maidens, 16 runs and six wickets as Australia folded for 111. His 82 in Gqeberha came in a 183-run eighth-wicket stand with Bavuma that broke that match open.

The series-defining innings. He walked in at 12/2 in Gqeberha, made a career-best 179 off 334 balls across nine hours, and was the last man out at 425/9. Low scores in Durban and Newlands (3, 1, 0, 35) cost him a higher mark, but he captained South Africa to a come-from-behind series win and the No.1 Test ranking.

Four for 68 on the opening day in Durban, then the partnership that settled the series: 115 in the Newlands second innings, adding 154 for the sixth wicket with Rickelton after South Africa had conceded a 100-run first-innings lead. Ten wickets at under 24 as the fourth seamer.

Took over the gloves from Kyle Verreynne after Durban and made the role his own. His 101 off 219 balls in the Newlands decider, alongside Mulder, dragged South Africa from 181/5 to 387. Tidy behind the stumps: nine catches and a run-out in two Tests as keeper.

Missed Durban, returned in Gqeberha with 2/33 and 4/77, then tore into the Newlands chase with two wickets in the first over and 3/39 as Australia were rolled for 111. The Head dismissal was his 350th Test wicket.

Starts in every match, including 75 in Durban and 78 at Newlands, without converting one into a hundred. His slip catching was excellent all series, including two sharp takes off Harmer on day two of the decider.

A strong first series. After a quiet debut innings he made 95 off 94 balls and 62 at Newlands, sharing a 158-run opening stand with Markram on the first day of the decider. Threw away a century to a charge against Lyon.

Passed 45 three times (49, 46 and 50) and never once went on. Plenty of starts, nothing to show for them, and his place is now a fair question.

Two second-innings wickets and a useful 34 in Durban, but he did not play again as South Africa settled on Harmer as their spinner for the rest of the series.

Forty-three in the Newlands second innings was his best return. His juggled catch off Rabada removed Steven Smith in Gqeberha.

Hostile in Durban, where his four wickets included a searing yorker to bowl Maddinson. His series ended when he walked off during his fourth over of Australia's first innings in Gqeberha.

Thirty-two and 1 in Durban, bounced out by Cummins in the first innings. Lost his spot when South Africa reshuffled for Gqeberha.

Came in for the injured Nortje at Newlands. One wicket and a frugal six-over spell as Australia were bowled out for 111.

Kept wicket in Durban and was replaced by Rickelton for the rest of the series.

The leading run-scorer of the series by a margin of 151. His 190 off 397 balls in Durban was the innings of the tour, and he added 82 in the second innings plus two wickets with his off-spin for Player of the Match. Scores of 12 and 11 in Gqeberha and a first-ball duck in the Newlands chase kept him off the very top.

The leading wicket-taker of the series. Six for 72 on the opening day at Newlands and three more in the second innings gave him nine for the match. His 450th Test wicket was a 144kph bouncer that Wiaan Mulder gloved in Gqeberha. He got little support when it mattered on the final day.

His career-best 6/49 in the fourth innings closed out Durban for Australia. Wicketless in Gqeberha and largely held in check at Newlands until the game was gone.

His 121 in the Gqeberha follow-on was Australia's best resistance of the series. The other five innings produced 89 runs combined, including 41 and 14 in the decider.

One Test, two jobs done. Five for 81 in South Africa's first innings in Gqeberha, then a 166-ball 40 as nightwatch that dragged the follow-on into the final session of the match.

Called up for the decider with Smith injured and made his second Test hundred, 102 off 135 balls in Australia's 429. Run out for 4 as the chase fell apart.

Captained the Durban win, but his attack was outlasted twice after that. His 90-ball 11 on the final day at Newlands summed up Australia's last stand: plenty of fight, not enough runs. Expensive with the ball across the series.

Reliable behind the stumps all series; the catch to dismiss Bavuma in Gqeberha was his 200th in Tests. His 80 in the decider's first innings was his one big score with the bat.

Left out in Gqeberha, recalled for the decider and outbowled by Harmer on the surface that decided the series. His unbeaten 33 was Australia's top score in the 111, which tells you the rest.

Sixty-five in the first innings at Newlands and a 110-ball 27 in the chase, the one specialist batter to resist Harmer for long. Not used with the ball.

A lean series that ended early: neck pain on day four in Gqeberha turned out to be a cervical facet joint injury, and he was ruled out of the decider on the morning of the game. Australia say they expect him fit for the New Zealand series in December.

A brisk 39 not out in Durban's declaration innings was the highlight. Dropped after Gqeberha as Australia reshuffled for the decider.

Six innings, no fifty: 37, 37, 14, 39, 0 and 4. Repeatedly gave Harmer his wicket, and his place in the side is now openly discussed in the Australian press.

Twenty-nine and a maiden Test wicket (Breetzke) in the first innings at Newlands, then a two-ball duck in the chase.

Scores of 0, 48, 0 and 8 on his return to Test cricket. Dropped after Gqeberha.