Rain won't dampen Khawaja's push for double ton

Despite the loss of almost 140 overs to Sydney's miserable weather, Usman Khawaja believes he'll be given the chance to complete a career-first Test double hundred before Australia take the ball and push for an unlikely win over South Africa.

Day three of the third NRMA Insurance Test was abandoned at around 3.30pm today without a ball bowled after almost 40mm of rain fell on the SCG, which means Australia resume tomorrow on their day two score of 4-475 with Khawaja unbeaten on 195.

And while the Australia opener notes it would be "pretty harsh" if skipper Pat Cummins declared on that score when play eventually resumes, he also understands his team need to get bowling if they hope to claim the 20 Proteas wickets standing between them and a series clean sweep.

As the teams spent seven hours confined to their respective dressing rooms watching rain squalls whip through the stadium on south-easterly winds gusting up to 50kph, Cummins teased Khawaja by suggesting that if conditions eased he would consider declaring immediately.

But having already surpassed his career-high score of 174 (made against New Zealand at the Gabba seven years ago), Khawaja is eyeing the second double-ton of his 14-year first-class tenure and confident he'll have an opportunity to complete it should the dire weather eventually clear.

"I think it would be pretty harsh if he (Cummins) bowled straight away, I don't think that's going to happen," Khawaja said soon after stumps were drawn, even though they were never actually put in place today.

"We could go out there and get a few more runs really quickly (tomorrow), or we could declare pretty much straight away.

"It's obviously a decision he'll have to make tomorrow, decide on what the weather's doing and how he wants to play out this game.

"I think there will still be an opportunity to try and win this game, so I can't imagine us just going 'oh, we'll bat all day tomorrow'.

"If you don't give yourself a crack at trying to win the game at least, you've done a disservice to the actual game.

"But obviously we need to bowl at some stage if we want to try and win the game."

Having captained Queensland in 33 Marsh Sheffield Shield matches since 2015, Khawaja claimed to "have an idea in my head" how Australia might go about forcing a win in the reduced time available, and suggested Cummins shared that strategy.

But the 36-year-old declined to reveal what that blueprint involved, although its hard to believe it doesn't require Australia relying on dismissing South Africa more than 200 runs shy of their first innings score, forcing them to follow-on and then bowling them out a second time.

It's three years since Australia last enforced the follow-on in a Test – when they trounced Pakistan in Adelaide on the back of David Warner's unbeaten triple-century in 2019 – and they haven't tried it at Sydney since the 2002 New Year Test against the Proteas.

However, with the previous Tests against South Africa at Brisbane and Melbourne wrapped up within two and four days respectively, bowler fatigue should not be an issue with Australia's next Test assignment more than a month away in India.

Furthermore, pre-Test predictions of a spin-friendly SCG pitch meant Australia have loaded up with frontline and part-time spinners to complement pace pair Cummins and Josh Hazlewood and could call on auxiliary bowlers Marnus Labuschagne, Travis Head and Steve Smith if needed.

But Khawaja conceded that, in addition to curtailing the first three days of the Test from a scheduled 270 overs to 131 thus far, the relentless damp has also ensured the pitch is not as conducive to turn as expected.

"The issue is the wicket would have deteriorated a lot more if there was sun on it," he said.

"There hasn't been - it's just got wet, so it retains its moisture.

"So a lot of things have worked against us trying to win this game.

"If the sun came out for five days, I think it would have been a cracking Test match.

"I think that wicket would have been cool to play on, it would have broken up, it would have been like old school SCG when I started playing on it – great day one and day two, then by days three and four it's spinning and (surface) plates coming out.

"That's disappointing but you can't control the weather."

With a minimum of 196 overs remaining in the Test, noting further showers are forecast for Sydney tomorrow, Khawaja concedes a result "isn't very likely" given the amount of time lost to bad weather.

And while a draw would ensure Australia completes another undefeated home summer, it won't absolutely guarantee them a berth in this year's World Test Championship Final to be played at The Oval in June.

It would mean participation in that biennial play-off match would be dependent on results from the four-Test Qantas tour of India, where Australia have won just once in 15 attempts since 2004.

But despite the fact this Sydney pitch presents the nearest replica of an India surface an Australia Test venue can produce, and even though a result in the final NRMA Insurance Test remains a long shot, Khawaja does not believe his team will opt for centre-wicket batting practice over coming days.

Instead, the members of the likely top six Cummins will lead to India at month's end will return to the KFC BBL and not play any further competitive red-ball cricket until they arrive on the subcontinent.

"These conditions are similar, but they're never the same," Khawaja said when asked if there might be a temptation to begin Australia's India preparation early by batting as long as possible at the SCG.

"When you go to India, everything's different.

"The pitch doesn't bounce as much generally and the bowlers, how they bowl is different.

"It's nice to have practice but it's hard to replicate that if I'm being honest."

Men's NRMA Insurance Test Series v South Africa

First Test: Australia won by six wickets

Second Test: Australia won by an innings and 182 runs

Jan 4-8: Third Test, SCG, 10.30am AEDT

Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Ashton Agar, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Lance Morris, Nathan Lyon, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, David Warner

South Africa squad: Dean Elgar (c), Temba Bavuma, Gerald Coetzee, Theunis de Bruyn, Sarel Eree, Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Heinrich Klaasen, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada, Rassie van der Dussen, Kyle Verreynne, Lizaad Williams, Khaya Zondo

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