Fit-again Rabada bolsters Proteas ahead of high-stakes Gqeberha Test

The Stakes: Australia holds a 1-0 lead in the series following a dominant win in Durban. They are chasing a rare away series victory and looking to edge closer to the World Test Championship (WTC) final. Meanwhile, South Africa faces a must-win situation at St George's Park in Gqeberha to avoid slipping further down the WTC table.

Parallels to 2018: The series feels reminiscent of 2018, when Australia also took a 1-0 lead after a strong middle-order performance and disciplined bowling. However, unlike 2018, the Proteas are ringing in multiple changes to turn the tide.

Ryan Rickelton's returns of 0 and 2 in the opening Test were put under the spotlight. Since his 259 against Pakistan in January 2025 he has made just one half-century in 12 Test innings at an average of 25.72. His three single-digit scores have all come against Australia. The response from South Africa's hierarchy has been to give him the gloves, a role he has never filled in Test cricket, and potentially move him down the order, having not batted lower than No. 3 since October 2024 which was the only time he batted lower than No.5. Rickelton has vast experience in the dual role in white-ball cricket and first-class cricket.

Twelve of his 19 first-class centuries have come while keeping. South Africa will want him to keep as well as Verreynne while providing more runs, with the latter averaging 20 over his last 13 innings without a half-century.

Team News & Changes

South Africa (The Reshuffle):

Kagiso Rabada returns from a hamstring injury to bolster the pace attack at the site of his famous 2018 run-in.

Tristan Stubbs has been dropped, with Matthew Breetzke expected to open the batting, and Marques Ackerman in line for a potential debut.

Ryan Rickelton will take over wicketkeeping duties (leaving Kyle Verreynne out) and is likely to bat lower down the order. The hosts are expected to shift from playing two spinners to a more traditional pace-heavy attack.

Australia (Settled XI):

Australia is expected to keep their lineup largely unchanged, with Cameron Green still unavailable due to an abdominal strain. Their primary question mark is how well their veteran quicks recover after a heavy workload in Durban on a short turnaround.

Across Australia's last 27 Tests since late July 2023, only three top three batters have scored Test centuries. Two of them are the retired pair of Usman Khawaja and David Warner. The third is Travis Head.

Conditions & Weather

Pitch & Forecast: The pitch at Gqeberha is expected to feature a healthy covering of grass, though it may play on the slower side. Weather Warning: The forecast for the first two days is dicey with rain expected to play a disruptive factor, before clearing up from day three onwards.