Warne accounted for Herschelle Gibbs, Ashwell Prince, Boeta Dippenaar and Mark Boucher as Australia set up a massive innings victory inside three days despite a 66-run second wicket partnership between Gibbs and Prince.

Warne’s third wicket took him past Kapil Dev into second place on the list of Test wicket-takers. He now has 436 with only Courtney Walsh on 519 still ahead of him.

Gibbs and Prince took South Africa from 20 for one to 86 before Warne removed both partners. The legspinner, so often South Africa’s nemesis on Australian pitches, broke the second wicket stand by bowling Prince off bat and pad for 28. He followed this with the wicket of Gibbs for 47, stumped by Adam Gilchrist as the opener ran down the pitch at him.

South Africa were 98 for three at this point and McGrath made it 98 for four when he had Kallis caught at the wicket, pushing tentatively forward outside off stump.

Neil McKenzie took South Africa into three figures with successive fours through the covers off Warne, but in the tea over Warne had Dippenaar trapped lbw for 1 as he padded up before bowling Boucher around his legs, also for 1.

Following on some 493 runs in arrears, South Africa lost left-hander opener Gary Kirsten in the second over after the resumption, but Gibbs and Prince kept Australia at bay to go to afternoon drinks at 67 for one.

Kirsten fell to Jason Gillespie’s first ball of the innings, thick-edging a drive that was wonderfully held by Damien Martyn diving to his right at point. Kirsten was out for 12 with the first wicket going down at 20.

Prince, who failed by just one run to make a 50 in his first Test innings, joined Prince and together they defied the Australian attack with Gibbs, typically, playing a number of risky attacking shots while Prince, as had been the case in the first innings, looking as solid as any of the South African batsmen in this match.

Gibbs brought up the South African 50 when Shane Warne came into the attack, tucking the legspinner’s first ball past square leg for two and at drinks he had made 33 with Prince not out on 19.

Bowled out for 159 in reply to Australia’s 652 for seven declared, the South Africans needed a further 475 to make the tourists bat a second time. The South African cause is already self-evidently lost and such ambitions as still exist are concerned with matters such as trying to avoid an innings defeat inside three days.

With Australia continuing to employ attacking fields – throughout the tourists have had six or seven men in catching positions for their fast bowlers – Herschelle Gibbs and Gary Kirsten managed to bat out the six remaining overs of the morning session without further mishap.

Kirsten had 12 at the interval with Gibbs on 4.

In 1924 South Africa were bowled out for 30 by England at Edgbaston for a first innings deficit of 408, a record broken when Andre Nel became the last man out.

Captain Mark Boucher had gone for 23 when he drove loosely at Brett Lee and Adam Gilchrist accepted his second catch of the innings at 155 for nine and the innings closed when Nel was trapped lbw by Shane Warne.

South Africa had lost six wickets for 48 during the morning and the last seven South African wickets had fallen for 51.

The wickets were shared by the Australian bowlers with Glenn McGrath taking three for 28, Lee three for 40, Warne two for 26 and Jason Gillespie two for 58.

Some defiant hitting from Mark Boucher in what seemed to be a lost cause lifted South Africa slightly, but Makhaya Ntini was dismissed in the drinks over to leave the home side at 146 for eight at the end of the first hour.

The Australians had to wait no longer than the second over for their first wicket of the day when Jason Gillespie snared Ashwell Prince. The left-hander had added two to his overnight 47, but he was unable to record a 50 on debut as he steered Gillespie into the gully where Matthew Hayden took a magnificent two-handed catch diving to his left.

Boeta Dippenaar was out seven balls later without adding to his overnight 2 as Adam Gilchrist took an equally fine catch off Glenn McGrath and Australia claimed their third wicket of the day when Nicky Boje flashed at Gillespie for Mark Waugh to take a leaping catch above his at second slip.

Boje did not score and South Africa were 114 for seven, having lost three wickets for three runs since the start of play.

Makhaya Ntini joined Boucher and with a mixture of luck, defiance and lusty hitting the pair took South Africa 146 before Ntini tried to turn Brett Lee to leg and a leading edge flew to Steve Waugh in the gully. Ntini had contributed 9 with Boucher not out on 22 at the drinks break.