South Africa beat Australia by an innings and 31 runs in the second Test at St George's Park in Gqeberha, with the result arriving on the fifth and final day, Thursday 22 October 2026.
The result levelled the three-Test series 1-1 ahead of the decider in Cape Town. Australia batter Travis Head top-scored in the second innings with 121 from 190 balls, reaching his century off 151 balls.
It was Head's 13th Test century, and the first century by an Australian batter in a follow-on innings since the 1980s. South Africa paceman Marco Jansen had dropped him on 5 earlier in the innings.
Head was eventually out "chopped on", playing the ball onto his own stumps off the bowling of South Africa's Wiaan Mulder.
The defeat completed a one-sided match for Australia. South Africa's first innings, built on 179 from Temba Bavuma, reached 9 for 425 declared.
Jansen then took 5 for 33 as Australia were bowled out for 99 in their first innings and forced to follow on, a deficit Head's century could not fully repair.
Nightwatchman Scott Boland provided support in the second innings, making 40 from 166 balls before he too fell to Mulder. Australia were bowled out for 295.
Mulder also dismissed Australia captain Pat Cummins, for 4. South Africa's Kagiso Rabada had Australia's Steve Smith caught by Matthew Breetzke for 3, and later bowled Mitchell Starc for 11.
Jansen took the final wicket, bowling Australia's Josh Hazlewood, as the light faded to end the match.
Speaking after the match, Cummins said his side had fallen well short of their best.
"We were a long way away from our best," he said. "Across the board just not enough of us contributed."
"Ideally we'd be scoring more runs. The pitch was pretty good out there," he said. "I thought there was some good fight today."
"Scotty Boland and Trav [Head] both played their roles really well, but it was a fair way to come back from and it wasn't quite enough," Cummins said.
Hazlewood, Australia's pace bowler, spoke to Fox Cricket after the match.
"That's what you see from the great players, the ebb and flow of each innings," he said.
Hazlewood pointed to Head's ability to shift tempo as the key to his long innings.
"So going through those gears is key," he said.
Australia won the first Test in Durban by 214 runs. The decider, the third Test, starts at Newlands in Cape Town on Tuesday 27 October 2026.