Australia face batting selection questions after innings defeat in Gqeberha

Australia captain Pat Cummins admitted his side fell well short of its standards after South Africa completed an innings-and-31-run victory in the second Test at Gqeberha on Friday. Cummins said only Travis Head and Scott Boland produced the required fight on the final day, while the rest of the batting group failed to contribute enough across both innings.

Australia lost their first-innings wickets for 99, their lowest total in a decade, and could not recover despite Head's century and three partnerships involving tail-enders. Cummins rejected suggestions the performance was gutless but accepted that the batters had played loose shots and needed to show greater patience on a challenging surface. He confirmed the team would review its batting composition before the series decider in Cape Town.

The defeat leaves the three-match series level at 1-1 and drops Australia's World Test Championship percentage to 75.00. Cummins said the squad still possesses sufficient all-round options but must extract greater collective output from its specialist batters over the next five days.