Captains' minds drift mistily back ahead of Newlands 'grand final'

Perhaps it's the mesmerising effect of Table Mountain's verdant slope down to one of cricket's most spectacular grounds. Maybe it's the glow of what Pat Cummins and Temba Bavuma acknowledge has been some of the highest-quality cricket they have played.

It may even be a response to the nastiness that came to a head the last time Australia featured in a Test at Newlands.

Whatever the reason, as much as the captains of the two standout men's Test outfits are zeroing in on one of the more enchanting series climaxes of recent times, so too have they allowed their mind's eyes to drift mistily backwards in time across their very different journeys to Cape Town this week.

For Cummins, the build-up to what he termed a "grand final" has reminded him more of how much has changed for him since his memorable introduction to international cricket in South Africa than the events here eight years ago.

"It really hasn't been spoken about too much this week," Cummins said of the sandpaper controversy on Monday. "We've probably got a few reasons to not enjoy this this venue. But every time we come here, it's always just, 'Wow, what an amazing cricket ground' and you kind of get excited for the week ahead."

In 2011, in between his debuts in both white-ball formats and his ensuing Test entrance, Cummins was 12th man for the remarkable Cape Town Test that famously saw Australia rolled for just 47.

Fifteen years on, he says it simply: "Life has changed a lot". In tow with the Test skipper this week are his wife Becky and their two young children, among the contingent of Australian family members who have travelled to Cape Town.

Back in 2011, Camps Bay's glittering coastline that rolls up to bars and restaurants with killer Atlantic views provided the ideal stomping ground for an 18-year-old pace prodigy with the world at his feet. 

An invitation to join a group that ventured there for a swim on Sunday was politely turned down. "I find I'm turning into one of those boring people that don't go out as much, whether it's the family or (because) I've just been at places a lot," Cummins told reporters.

"I remember my first tour – I couldn't believe that Ricky Ponting and these guys weren't going to Camps Bay every night. So I think it's come a little bit full circle.

"All I remember was how much I loved that first experience. Everything – cricket, the touring part, hanging out with guys that have played 100 Tests. So hopefully (Australia's younger players) are having a similar experience.

"Everyone says it when they retire or at the back-end of their career, but it's how quickly it goes, and I can't believe that was 15 years ago.

"My first ever Test experience was here. I was running the drinks, and this was where we got bowled out for 47 – so that was a wild introduction.

"I remember I was obviously very nervous during my debut. But even that first week where I was running the drinks, I remember waking up nervous every morning because I was going to be in the changeroom for a Test match."

Cummins would be the first to admit his path to becoming one of world cricket's most influential figures has been less thorny than that of his Proteas counterpart.

Indeed, the Rainbow Nation's first black African to captain the Test side has faced hardships unfathomable to most Australians.

A product of the Langa township on Cape Town's outskirts, Bavuma navigated the initially foreign world of South Africa's private-school system after earning a scholarship for his rare batting talent before entering his teenage years.

Hitting his maiden Test hundred at Newlands, a 15-minute drive from the unkept streets that provided his childhood cricket grounding, meant much to a nation still dealing with the after-effects of the apartheid era.

His unbeaten 102 against England was the one innings nominated by Bavuma to rival his nine-hour Gqeberha epic that dragged the Proteas from the brink of a series flop to now arriving in his hometown with a shot at adding the No.1 Test ranking to the mace he also helped take off Australia at Lord's last year.

But in the decade between his first and fifth hundreds, Bavuma conceded there were significant periods of doubt, particularly when he compared himself to the batting doyens he shared a dressing room with during his career's infancy.

"I have been playing international cricket for 10 years, right, so I think at some point I was going to get something right," Bavuma said to laughter when asked about his second Test knock that began when his team was 2-12 in wicked batting conditions.

"I think also just accepting, I guess, me as a player, what it is that I can and can't do, what allows me to be successful.

"I think the first couple of years you're always kind of scratching around, trying to find this secret formula or whatever it is that allows you to be successful.

"You look at guys like AB (de Villiers), Hash(im Amla) – totally different guys (to him) – and you think you have to play like AB or you have to play like Hash, and you forget to kind of embrace what you have. I think there was a lot of that."

Darker times as a team, specifically their 0-2 series humbling Down Under in 2022-23, just months before Bavuma commenced his reign as skipper that has so far endured only a solitary defeat, also had a crystallising effect on several of South Africa's current squad.

"There's a massive desire there, especially for the older guys," Bavuma said when questioned on his team's hunger to topple Australia. "I think of the last series we played in Australia where they bullied us in their backyard and they played unbelievable cricket.

"So I think there's that motivation from us to right those wrongs and also to look after our home record as well, playing against Australia … I don't feel I have to motivate anyone to ensure that the result goes our way.

"It's definitely not (just) another game of cricket. I think it's exciting, firstly, that we managed to get it to this point, 1-1, come to Newlands – not many better places to play cricket.

"In terms of the bigger picture, yes, there's an opportunity for us to get closer to the (next World Test Championship) final.

"Some guys in the group haven't tasted a Test (series) victory over Australia, so it would be nice for them to experience what that means. We want to see guys go out and do special things for the team, and over the next five days there will be that opportunity."

Where the pair are aligned is that the captivating twists and turns this series has so far thrown up has provided some of the best cricket either has seen in almost 150 combined Tests.  

Cummins pointed to the absence of "any easy runs" and that the series' two centurions – Matthew Renshaw with his 468-minute 190 in the first Test, Bavuma with his 179 in the second – have done so on the back of batting for marathon stints, while also noting the lack of "any spells where the pressure was released" from either side's attack.

Bavuma meanwhile has observed a series in which batters have had no scope to lose sharpness, and nor have bowlers had space for "any soft periods".

"I'd like to believe and feel that we are speaking to that tag or label of us being champions," he said. "The next five days, hopefully that's the cherry on the top."

For Australia, there is a sense that this week's de-facto final has taken on even more meaning given the infrequency of South Africa-Australia Test series, particularly compared to their contests with India and England.

"It was almost like it was inevitable it was going to end up 1-1, and it feels like the cricket's spoken for itself in these first couple of weeks. It's all come together here," said Cummins.

"It's going to be huge. Both teams have fired shots and can't wait for it. We've got almost two months until our next Test after this, so this is your grand final for the next little bit."

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 Test squad: Temba Bavuma (c), Marques Ackerman, David Bedingham, Corbin Bosch, Gerald Coetzee, Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Senuran Muthusamy, Dane Paterson, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne

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