Australia return to Newlands on Tuesday for the series-deciding third Test against South Africa, at a ground that still carries the shadow of the 2018 ball-tampering scandal. The series is level at 1-1 after big wins for both sides in the first two Tests, in Durban and Gqeberha.

A mental test as much as a cricketing one

Former captain Steve Smith was at the centre of the Sandpapergate scandal in 2018, and current skipper Pat Cummins, seamer Josh Hazlewood and spinner Nathan Lyon were part of that side, though they say they had no knowledge of the attempt to alter the ball with sandpaper. Smith has averaged little more than 20 with the bat on this tour, and opener Travis Head has backed him to respond, saying: “He’ll be fine. He’s been through a lot in that space and handles it well. Sometimes it brings the best out of him.”

The cricket itself

Wicketkeeper Alex Carey said on Sunday that the pitch looked like another good Test surface, after five-day contests at both earlier venues. There has never been a Test played at Newlands in October, and only three in November, all against Australia — but ticket sales for the first three days have been strong after sparse crowds at the first two Tests.

What is at stake

Beyond the series, the match is a measure of how far this Australian side has travelled since 2018: a team that can win a decider at the scene of its darkest day, in front of a crowd ready to remind it, would close a chapter that has followed it for eight years. South Africa, with home momentum and a level series, will be determined to write a different ending.