Herschelle Gibbs spoiled Ricky Ponting's plans to send South Africa in and knock them over cheaply in Port Elizabeth, where the hosts powered to a daunting 317 for 6. Gibbs was the key man and posted his first ODI century in more than a year but an entertaining 84 from AB de Villiers also kept the scoreboard ticking at a rapid rate before a late flurry from JP Duminy bumped the target up.
Their efforts gave South Africa a strong chance of wrapping up the series with a match to play, which was exactly what Australia wanted to avoid when they gambled by fielding first and naming Shane Harwood as their third oldest ODI debutant of all time. It was meant to be an attacking move and while Harwood was solid, too much work was again left for Mitchell Johnson.
Not for the first time this series South Africa cruised through the middle overs without much threat from the Australian attack. Gibbs and de Villiers put on 136 for the third wicket at better than a run a ball and their main targets were the spinners Nathan Hauritz and Michael Clarke, who combined to bowl ten overs for 73.
Gibbs dispatched both men into the stands and de Villiers sent consecutive Hauritz deliveries over the long-on and midwicket boundaries and the only positive thought that could have run through Ponting's mind was that South Africa are likely to also use two slow men. Nathan Bracken also came in for some rough treatment and his ten overs cost 64 as the South Africans advanced at him with little fear.
Gibbs attacked Bracken early with a pair of boundaries, including a slap over long-on after advancing down the pitch, and also took to Johnson with a slash forward of point. It was an innings that alternated between frenetic and controlled and on the whole, Gibbs waited for his opportunities and struck nine fours and two sixes in his 110.
His 21st ODI century came from 106 deliveries with a clip for two off Harwood, who at 35 is the same age as Gibbs, yet was making his debut. It had been 14 months since Gibbs scored a one-day international hundred - his most recent had come against West Indies in Johannesburg - and it confirmed that he still has plenty to offer South Africa in limited-overs cricket.
Eventually Gibbs holed out to Bracken and de Villiers' 74-ball innings ended when he skied one off Johnson in the 43rd over. As he walked off, de Villiers looked disgusted with himself for not reaching triple figures but he had given South Africa more than enough of a base for a late assault, which came largely through Duminy's 40 from 25 balls.
Graeme Smith (20) and Jacques Kallis had also helped with the solid opening. The two men were the only ones to lose their wickets up until the 38-over mark and Kallis, whose deliberate upper cut went straight to third man for 17, was the first one-day international wicket for Harwood.
It was an enjoyable moment for Harwood, who was in South Africa training with the Rajasthan Royals and only won his spot because of a fractured foot suffered by Brett Geeves during the loss in Cape Town. So last-minute was the selection that Harwood wore Marcus North's shirt when he became the third oldest Australian, after Bob Simpson and Bob Holland, to make his ODI debut.
Desperate to keep the series alive, Australia chose Harwood as a more aggressive option than Ben Laughlin, who played two games earlier in the series. Harwood's 2 for 57 was respectable and he picked up Duminy from the last ball of the innings but Australia's batsmen, who have struggled throughout the series, faced an enormous task to avoid handing South Africa the series.
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