South Africa batsman Faf du Plessis expects wagging tails to play a major role in deciding his side’s Test series against Australia.

It’s no secret Australia, no longer boasting the batting consistency of their halcyon days, have recently relied heavily on their lower-order for runs.

And their new-found ability to go for the quick kill with the ball and stop the likes of Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann from boosting England’s totals was one of the big turnarounds in between the two recent Ashes series.

South Africa’s bowlers showed just as much grit on day one of their practice match against a national composite XI, Vernon Philander top-scoring with 58 as the Proteas recovered from 7-151 to post a total of 300.

With spicy wickets and bowler-friendly conditions expected to put runs at a premium throughout the three-Test series, du Plessis suggested the much-hyped battle of the bowlers would extend to the batting crease.

“Those runs are really important … I think it’s going to be a crucial part of the series – (how many runs come from the) 7 to 11 of both teams,” du Plessis said on Tuesday, adding that Philander had risen to allrounder status.

“They’ve got a long batting line-up as well.

“So it’s something we’re going to spend a lot of time on, we see it as a crucial part of Test matches now.

“The days of just rolling over (are over).”

Du Plessis is set to shift up to No.4 in South Africa’s order when the opening Test starts in Centurion next Wednesday, taking Jacques Kallis’ spot and with it plenty of expectation.

“The one thing the Australians do really well is that they target guys,” du Plessis said.

“They will probably target Graeme (Smith) because he is the captain, and I thought they did that really well with Alastair Cook.

“Then they will look at other guys. Like myself. I am going to be in a new role so they may want to target that.”