Faf du Plessis hits defiant ton to silence Adelaide boos

Australia got through the final 12 overs without loss but the declaration prevented Dave Warner from opening the batting as he was off the field towards the end of the South African innings. Matt Renshaw, one of three new caps in the Australia side, and Usman Khawaja faced the new pink ball instead but they were only able to put 14 runs on the board and will resume on eight and three respectively on Friday. Du Plessis’s timely declaration capped what must have been an extremely satisfying first day for the South African, who came to the crease to catcalls with his side tottering at 44-3 but departed to an ovation after hitting 118 not out. Two days after being fined for ball-tampering during the second test victory that sealed the series with a match to spare, du Plessis showed just the sort of grit and determination that Australia have been looking for from their batsmen.

BRIEF SCORES: South Africa 259/9 decl. (du Plessis 118*, Cook 40, Hazlewood 4/68) vs Australia 14/0.