Clutch Maxwell steers Aussies home in final-over thriller

Glenn Maxwell has produced another piece of run-chasing brilliance to guide Australia to a series victory in the third BKT Tyres T20I against South Africa in Cairns.

Maxwell (62no from 36 balls, eight fours, two sixes) was the last recognised batter with 51 runs required from the final six overs, forced to turn down singles to shield the lower order from the strike.

It proved another masterstroke from the mercurial allrounder, who timed the chase to perfection and singlehandedly hit the 10 runs required of Lungi Ngidi's final over to seal the win by two wickets with one ball remaining.

As the equation came down to four required from two balls, Maxwell finished the job with a trademark reverse sweep off the match's penultimate delivery.

Earlier, South Africa were held to 7-172 after another Dewald Brevis blast looked to have them set for at least 200.

And when Mitch Marsh plundered five sixes to launch Australia to 0-52 in the Powerplay, the result looked beyond doubt early in the chase.

But South Africa's bowlers had other ideas.

Marsh had threatened a big score in the opening matches in Darwin, cracking the first ball of the series for six and hitting 22 off 13 balls in the second match.

Things finally clicked for the Australian captain at Cazalys Stadium however, reaching his half-century off 34 balls, his first time he has passed the milestone in 19 T20I innings.  

But the Proteas bowlers responded with a four-over burst of 4-22 to steal the ascendancy.

Captain Aiden Markram said on Friday that he would "trust his gut" when deciding when to bowl and his intuition was spot on as he broke the 66-run opening stand by having Travis Head caught at short fine leg.

It's been a series Josh Inglis will want to forget after he was bowled by allrounder Corbin Bosch. Inglis missed game two with the flu after a golden duck in the opening match and fell first ball once again with a Bosch ball that hurried the keeper-batter.

Then Kwena Maphaka grabbed two crucial wickets in an over, with Marsh and Cameron Green both caught on the leg-side boundary.

Maxwell and Tim David steadied the chase until Kagiso Rabada was called back into the attack.

Markram brought his main man back for the 14th of the innings and Rabada grabbed 2-2 which included the wickets of Tim David and Aaron Hardie.

But the South Africans couldn't dislodge Maxwell.

The Victorian had reached his half-century off 30 balls immediately after he dispatched a Kagiso Rabada free hit onto the packed-out grass bank.

Bosch threatened to steal the game for South Africa with an incredible display of yorker bowling at the death with Maxwell stuck at the non-striker's end.

He claimed the wickets of Ben Dwarshuis and Nathan Ellis in consecutive balls to bring the visitors back into the contest with a maiden over.

But Maxwell's latest epic got Australia over the line.

Asked to bat first, South Africa looked set for a second consecutive 200-plus score as Brevis repeated his heroics from Tuesday with a 22-ball fifty.

His 27-run over off Aaron Hardie, which featured three huge sixes in a row, powered SA to 3-108 after 11 overs.

Fresh off his 41-ball century in Cairns, Brevis had brought his sweet timing across the state border with the biggest of his launches measuring 120m according to Fox Cricket's broadcast.

But just as it appeared the Aussies had been struck with a case of déjà vu, Maxwell pulled off a stunning catch at long on to dismiss the young gun who had mistimed a slap-shot off Nathan Ellis.

The wicket of Brevis (53 off 26) brought all the Proteas momentum to a halt as they managed only 33 runs in the next six overs.

None of the visitors could find the same timing as Brevis, although Lhuan-dre Pretorius (24 off 15) threatened in the Powerplay but smashed Ellis straight to Aaron Hardie at midwicket.

SA managed a solid finish to the innings with 30 runs off the final three overs to reach 7-172, led by No.6 Rassie van der Dussen's unbeaten 38.

BKT Tyres T20I Series - Australia v South Africa

August 10: Australia won by 17 runs

August 12: South Africa won by 56 runs

August 16: Australia won by two wickets

Australia T20 squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Alex Carey, Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matt Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Owen (out with concussion), Matthew Short (out with injury), Adam Zampa

South Africa T20 squad: Aiden Markram (c), Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Nandre Burger, George Linde, Kwena Maphaka, Senuran Muthusamy, Lungi Ngidi, Nqaba Peter, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Prenelan Subrayen, Rassie van der Dussen

BKT Tyres ODI Series - Australia v South Africa

August 19: First ODI v South Africa, Cazalys Stadium, Cairns, 2:30pm AEST

August 22: Second ODI v South Africa, Great Barrier Reef Arena, Mackay, 2:30pm AEST

August 24: Third ODI v South Africa, Great Barrier Reef Arena, Mackay, 2:30pm AEST

Australia ODI squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Xavier Bartlett, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Adam Zampa

South Africa ODI squad: Temba Bavuma (c), Corbin Bosch, Matthew Breetzke, Dewald Brevis, Nandre Burger, Tony de Zorzi, Aiden Markram, Senuran Muthusamy, Keshav Maharaj, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Prenelan Subrayen