Lunch Australia 390 and 174-4 (Maddinson 48, Labuschagne 37, Renshaw 32* Jansen 1-28) lead South Africa 284 (Bedingham 49, Cummins 3-54, Hazlewood 2-54) by 280 runs
Nic Maddinson set the tone in the morning session on day four with an aggressive approach before falling agonisingly short of a maiden Test half-century. Despite losing four wickets, Australia swiftly built a formidable lead against South Africa in the first Test on a Kingsmead surface starting to play tricks.
After new opener Maddinson's breezy 38-ball 48, Marnus Labuschagne looked in good touch but was dismissed for 37 for the second time in the match. It was a missed opportunity for Labuschagne, who entered the series under enormous pressure having not scored a Test century since the 2023 Ashes tour.
Matt Renshaw, whose 190 in the first innings turned the match on its head, continued to reverse-sweep with good effect and he made it through to lunch alongside Alex Carey.
Maddinson, a shock selection having not played first-class cricket since March 2025, dominated the first hour of the day's play in a major relief after his excruciating 33-ball duck in the first innings.
Australia lost regular wickets but did importantly score at a rapid rate, with the distinct possibility of truncated play impacting their push for victory. Each of the first three days ended early in the final session due to bad light amid thickening dark clouds that gather like clockwork in Durban at this time of year.
After South Africa's batters wasted relatively benign conditions on day three, the surface is getting more challenging with several deliveries from quick Anrich Nortje dying through to wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne while he also produced threatening bounce.
Nortje was a handful after he unfurled a hostile spell early in the session marked by several vicious bouncers, including one that smashed into Steven Smith's helmet.
As expected, the surface is starting to significantly turn with spinners Simon Harmer and Keshav Maharaj taking a wicket apiece.
Australia resumed their second innings at 33 for 0 after just 5.4 overs were bowled before the familiar bane of bad light prematurely ended day three. Maddinson hoped to continue his momentum from the previous afternoon, where he avoided a pair with a first-ball boundary.
He did exactly that although rode some luck early with a couple of boundaries through the slips. Maddinson was in an attacking mood, a far cry from the first innings where he looked so tentative, pouncing on width to crack several blows through the off-side to quickly overtake his highest Test score of 22. He overshadowed Travis Head, who on 11 tamely fell to Marco Jansen when a leading edge flew to mid-on. Head let out a groan knowing his fate while his middling away record in Test cricket continued, where he averages 31.6 compared to almost 52 in Australia.
There will also be questions over whether he should switch positions with Renshaw and move back to No.5, with Head having a highest score of only 29 in his last six innings. Skipper Temba Bavuma turned to Harmer early in the session, but Maddinson greeted him with a huge six down the ground as he moved to the brink of his half-century.
Maddinson, however, could do little against a superb yorker from Nortje that crashed into the stumps. Nortje could not sustain the pressure, with Smith shaking off the blow to his helmet by peeling off a trio of boundaries as the runs flowed. Bavuma deployed Harmer and Maharaj, who were ineffective with just one wicket between them in Australia's first innings. Smith's eyes lit up as he danced down the pitch to smash Harmer down the ground to raise his half-century partnership with Labuschagne.
But Smith could not repeat the dose moments later, holing out to the towering figure of Jansen who clung on at the second attempt.
Labuschagne appeared set for his first Test half-century since the Brisbane Ashes Test last December, but he trudged off the field in frustration after hitting Maharaj to cover.