An excellent hundred from South Africa opener Quinton de Kock and some excellent lower-order batting from Farhaan Behardien has helped the tourists set Australia a target of 281 to win the fifth one-day international at the SCG.

Wicketkeeper de Kock scored 107 from 117 balls, and combined with Behardien’s 63 from just 41 deliveries helped the Proteas finish on 6-280 on Sunday.

De Kock and Rilee Roussow (51) put on 107 for the second wicket after Glenn Maxwell had dangerman Hashim Amla caught behind by Matthew Wade for 18.

But the tourists’ middle order struggled against some disciplined bowling, slumping from 2-164 to 5-206 with Pat Cummins continuing his good form with figures of 3-54.

Steve Smith, the batting hero from Friday’s series-clinching win in Melbourne, also impressed with the ball on his home ground, taking 1-16 from five tidy overs.

Play was delayed for 10 minutes following a brief, but heavy, downpour on a hot and hazy afternoon in front of another small crowd, with the 48,000-seater ground less than a third full.

The break in play worked in favour of the hosts with Cummins striking with the first ball after the restart, deceiving Faf du Plessis (2) with a slower delivery that was caught by skipper George Bailey at mid-on.

David Miller soon followed du Plessis back to the pavilion with just five to his name when he top-edged Smith’s full toss to Cummins who took a running catch in the deep.

Cummins finally dismissed de Kock in the 41st over, with the 21-year-old not waiting for the finger of Billy Bowden to rise after feathering a catch into the gloves of Wade.

Victory for Australia will see them return to the top of the world one-day rankings, less than three months before the start of the Cricket World Cup.