Bavuma and Harmer make Australia toil

Temba Bavuma's fifth Test century, his first against Australia, alongside a counterattacking display from Marco Jansen lifted South Africa out of trouble on the third day in Gqeberha. The pair added 132 for the seventh wicket as Australia found success much harder to come by than on the rain-affected opening two days, although Scott Boland was able to secure a five-wicket haul.

Bavuma, who had battled hard to get through tough conditions the previous evening, brought up three figures from 226 balls with a crunching pull off Pat Cummins after a few nervous moments in the late nineties. There wasn't a huge crowd at St George's Park but, having been on the edges of their seats waiting for landmark, they gave Bavuma a fitting ovation as he removed his helmet and saluted the ground. It was a stirring response from Bavuma after a poor Test with the bat in Durban.

He had started the day on 41* and during the morning, when Jansen cut loose, had almost been caught but he stayed in his bubble, for the most part, with excellent judgement while pulling out the occasional pristine drive, including the one which took South Africa past 300.

The seventh-wicket stand, which had come at more than four runs an over, was broken by the second new ball when Jansen clipped Boland firmly to midwicket where Travis Head held a sharp catch. Four balls earlier, Jansen had been struck a painful blow in the groin by Boland's first delivery with the new ball which had him flat-out on the ground for minutes before he was able to resume.

Even when Jansen fell, Australia weren't able to rattle through the lower order with the new ball as Simon Harmer provided Bavuma with further support, including a stylish whip off his pads, a superbly-timed punch through point and a brace of pulls through midwicket against Josh Hazlewood.

In the absence of Nathan Lyon, Australia used Nic Maddinson's left-arm spin ahead of the new ball and he nearly removed Jansen when an inside-edged swipe skimmed past leg stump. Australia had still been a bowler down during the first session with Hazlewood unable to take part until he had made up the time he was off the field yesterday due to illness.

Hazlewood returned to the attack shortly after lunch but Boland and Mitchell Starc were preferred with the new ball and, by tea, had only sent down six overs for the day. He nearly claimed Bavuma on 122 but Smith couldn't take a very tough chance, diving low to his left at second slip, which caused some damage to a finger.

South Africa had resumed on 97 for 5 after battling across the first two truncated days. The outside edges of Bavuma and Wiaan Mulder were beaten in the early exchanges before Australia's breakthrough came in the seventh over of the day.

It was a brutal short delivery from Mitchell Starc which clipped Mulder's glove as it deflected into the slips via the helmet to give Starc his 450th Test wicket. Initially it was given not out on field by Chris Gaffaney, who had missed the first two days due to illness, but the review showed the small spike as Mulder was undergoing the mandatory concussion check. Gaffaney was again absent when play resumed after lunch with Arno Jacob alongside Richard Illingworth.

In the next over, Bavuma unfurled a pristine on-drive against Cummins but it was Jansen who led the counterattack. He collected three fours in an over against Starc, the best of them the third when he laced a drive through the covers. Then, facing Boland, he dispatched him straight down the ground with a shot which made a tremendous crack off the bat.

For the first time in the series, Australia were losing control of the scoring rate. That point was emphasised when Jansen lofted Boland straight down the ground for six, unperturbed by Alex Carey's presence up to the stumps. Jansen added another six when he hooked Cummins over deep square leg as Australia started to feel the absence of Hazlewood.

Spin was introduced in the 61st over and, shortly after reaching his half-century, Jansen sent Matt Renshaw straight down the ground with a step-hit for six. Jansen was given caught behind against Renshaw on 58, but the DRS showed Jansen had clipped his back pad.