Chasing 376 to win on a difficult SCG pitch that's keeping low, South Africa have fought on bravely to reach 1-62 after day four of the third Test against Australia.
Hashim Amla is 30 not out with acting captain Neil McKenzie on 25, giving the Proteas hope of scoring another 314 runs to achieve a third remarkable victory against Ricky Ponting's No.1-ranked side.
Only five wickets have fallen on day four despite the large cracks in the pitch. Australia resumed on 0-33 and declared at 4-257, 50 minutes after tea.
Forced to find a replacement after skipper Graeme Smith fractured his left hand in South Africa's first innings, the Proteas sent No.8 batsman Morne Morkel to open with McKenzie.
Morkel made a second-ball duck, caught at mid-on as debutant Doug Bollinger claimed his first Test wicket before his adoring home crowd of 19,061 fans.
Australia trail 2-0 in the three-match series and need a victory in the dead-rubber match to avoid a whitewash and maintain top ranking in the Test championship.
South Africa must post the sixth-highest successful fourth-innings run chase in Test history to win. The highest successful fourth-innings effort at the SCG is Australia's 2-288 against the Proteas three years ago.
Opener Simon Katich top-scored for Australia with 61 and Ponting was bowled by Morkel for 53.
First-innings century-maker Michael Clarke was last man out for 41.
Ponting declared as soon as Clarke departed. Mike Hussey was unbeaten on 45.
Australia's under-siege opener Matthew Hayden fell for 39 in the morning session, walking off the field to respectful applause from the crowd who wondered if the 103-Test veteran had played his last innings.
The Queensland left-hander was bowled by Morkel (2-38) after hitting seven fours in a better display than his first-innings 31.
Hayden, 37, has scored only 383 runs at 23.93 in his past nine matches since recovering from an Achilles injury and averaged 19.56 in this series.
