Top-order tangle complicated by Smith's neck heck

Steve Smith remaining waylaid by the neck issue that derailed his second Test has complicated the tangle of top-order concerns that has Australia considering multiple changes for their crunch Cape Town decider.

Josh Inglis joined Cameron Green and Marnus Labuschagne in facing the visitors' main bowlers under Table Mountain's vast shadow on Sunday morning, suggesting the latter's spot is firmly under consideration for the third Test against South Africa.

A call on Labuschagne is one of two pivotal decisions for selectors; the other will be on Scott Boland, whose irresistible case to play after being Australia's best bowler in the second Test is complicated by a Newlands wicket tipped to be less seam-friendly than Gqeberha’s.

"We're still a couple of days out, but it's looking like another great surface," said wicketkeeper Alex Carey. "I think the length of grass looks a bit less. There hasn't been too many Test matches this time of year here, but it's presenting as a really nice cricket wicket again."

But Smith's restricted preparation in his return to Newlands, where his Test captaincy tenure ended eight years ago, might be of greatest consequence to Australia's hopes of overcoming the format's reigning champions.

The 36-year-old was limited to around 15 minutes of gentle throwdowns from Michael Di Venuto in the nets, with Australia's physiotherapist timing the session to manage the neck twinge that flared up during Australia's calamitous first-innings performance in Gqeberha.

Even with Smith having reduced the duration of his once famously long training hits, he looks set to head into Australia's biggest match of their busy 2026-27 run to date with less time at the crease than he would like. 

"Looking forward to seeing Steve get out there and hopefully score the big runs we've seen him do (in the past)," Alex Carey said of the right-hander who has failed to pass 30 in the series. "He's had a couple of starts, he was impacted a little bit with his neck, but he's ready to go."

Smith later walked laps of the oval after standing in for Labuschagne's long conversation coach Andrew McDonald, coming before the No.3 faced Scott Boland and Josh Hazlewood on a practice wicket.

Coming into the series, selectors had not guaranteed Labuschagne's spot before injuries to Green (abdominal strain) and Inglis (broken finger) shortened the list of alternatives. With both now fit and Labuschagne having failed to make a notable score, either could be a candidate to bat at three.

Nic Maddinson was not among those who faced Australia's main bowlers and the last man into Australia's top seven looks like a likely omission to accommodate Green's return. Matthew Renshaw and Labuschagne are among the options to partner Travis Head against the new ball.

"His 30s have been frustrating for him, the way that he is playing so well to that point," Carey said of Labuschagne. "In the game of cricket I guess you know you can't give an inch any time.

"He's really hungry and understanding that his role is to go on and convert those runs. Keep doing what he's doing and do it for longer is what he's thinking."

Included over Lyon last week, Boland has made himself close to undroppable after following up his first-innings five-wicket haul with a 166-ball holdout with the bat that kept alive Australia's hopes of securing a final-day draw.

South Africa also reaped the benefits of a stump-to-stump seamer with a flatter trajectory in Wiian Mulder, who claimed Smith and Travis Head among his five victims in the Proteas' innings win.

But if a flatter or drier wicket in Cape Town necessitates Lyon's return, Australia will need to leave out one of captain Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc or Josh Hazlewood to accommodate Boland.

Cummins' leadership and Starc's left-arm leave them close to untouchable, though Hazlewood took nine wickets in the series opener against the Proteas. It looms as a viciously difficult call.

"We know he's a stump hitter," Carey said of Boland. "He's not as tall as the other boys in his trajectory, he's probably a little bit lower and skiddier.

"We saw that with Mulder as well – the guys that can hone in on the stumps, but also find the outside edge with that little bit of nip (is) really effective.

"It's nothing new. We've seen it for a number of years (with Boland) now. His record speaks for itself. He was world class with the ball and his grit with the bat was also there. Hopefully he pulls up well – he probably hasn't batted that long in a while."

Australia have overlooked a frontline slow bowler in five of their last 10 Tests, twice when Lyon was injured. Of those five spinner-less matches, Australia have lost twice (the two-day MCG Ashes Test and last week's game in Gqeberha) and won the other three (in Jamaica and the Gabba for pink-ball Tests, and for last summer's Ashes finale at the SCG).

"I don't know the stats around the win-loss (ratio) without (Lyon) – I think it's pretty good," said Carey. "Obviously last week Josh Hazlewood went down (with illness) and any time you lose a bowler, I guess the loads and the way you structure up changes.

"I think any way you try to take 20 wickets, the selectors will put a team out there and do that, and I think historically we've done pretty well.

"We've seen Renners (Renshaw) bowl overs, Beau Webster probably bowled the most amount he's bowled in a little while as well, and I thought he actually bowled really well without the wickets. I think we still structure up really well if we don't have that spinner.

"But we've seen for a number of years (Australia's strength) when you do have the spinner as well. So we'll wait and see … what the selectors see in the wicket."

Qantas tour of South Africa 2026

All matches to be broadcast exclusively in Australia on Kayo and Fox Cricket

First Test: Australia won by 214 runs

Second Test: South Africa won by an innings and 31 runs

Third Test: October 27-31, Newlands, Cape Town, 7:30pm AEDT (10:30am local)

South Africa squad for second Test: Temba Bavuma (c), Marques Ackerman, David Bedingham, Matthew Breetzke, Corbin Bosch, Gerald Coetzee, Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Senuran Muthusamy, Anrich Nortje, Dane Paterson, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Kyle Verreynne.

Australia Test squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Cameron Green, Sam Harper, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis (second Test onwards), Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nic Maddinson, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster