Maxwell the hero as Aussies win with one ball to spare

Glenn Maxwell has produced some trademark Big Show heroics to lead Australia to a series-deciding two-wicket T20 win over South Africa in Cairns.

Chasing South Africa's 7-172, Australia were cruising at 2-83 on the back of Mitch Marsh's 54 off 37 balls before disaster struck.

Australia lost 4-37 to put the contest back in the balance, and it was anyone's game with the hosts still needing 27 runs off the final three overs.

A chaotic beamer from paceman Kagiso Rabada - which sailed two metres above Maxwell's head - at the start of the 18th over was one big turning point.

Maxwell thumped his free hit for six, and it looked set to be a piece of cake once the equation got whittled down to 12 runs needed from 12 balls with four wickets still in hand.

There was more drama to come, with Corbin Bosch (3-26) dismissing Ben Dwarshuis and Nathan Ellis in consecutive deliveries to catapult South Africa back into the clash.

Ten runs were needed off the final over, and it became four runs required off the last two balls.

Maxwell kept his cool in the heat of the moment, employing a reverse whack to thump Lungi Ngidi's hip-high full toss for four to seal victory with one ball to spare.

The win secured a 2-1 T20 series victory for Australia ahead of the ODI series.

"It was a little bit nerve wracking," Maxwell said.

"We were down to two wickets and I knew I had to do the majority of the striking. It was nice to get a couple out of the middle right near the end.

"We've had a great run with this T20 group, so to have another series win against a quality opposition in South Africa is great for our confidence heading forward.

"I think there's another 13 or 14 internationals before the T20 World Cup, and we're building something really nicely at the moment in this group."

Earlier, Aaron Hardie felt the full brunt of the latest onslaught from Dewald Brevis as South Africa posted 7-172.

Brevis was the hero of South Africa's game-two win, cracking an unbeaten 125 off 56 balls to level the series at 1-1.

The 22-year-old was at it again on Saturday night, thumping 53 off 26 balls before being sent packing by a diving Maxwell catch in the deep.

Brevis signalled his intent early in his innings by pulling Ben Dwarshuis (0-37) onto the Cazalys Stadium roof.

But it was the 10th over - bowled by Hardie - when Brevis went into overdrive.

After a dot ball was followed by a two, Brevis proceeded to hit four consecutive sixes from the next four legal deliveries.

The first six - over cover - bounced onto the roof and out of the stadium.

Brevis sent his next six straight down the ground, with a crowd member crashing to the ground after running into a fence while trying to take a catch.

The next Hardie delivery was also sent straight down the ground - this time with no crowd injury - before the fourth was cut over cover.

A total of 27 runs was taken from the Hardie over, leaving South Africa well placed at 3-96 after 10 overs and 3-108 after 11.

Maxwell's diving catch in the deep to dismiss Brevis proved to be a huge turning point, with South Africa restricted to 62 runs from the final 8.2 overs.

Ellis finished with 3-31 off four overs, while leg spinner Adam Zampa was the most economical with 2-24 from his four overs.

The Australian team wore black armbands to pay tribute to former Australia Test captain and coach Bob Simpson, who died at the age of 89.

A minute's silence was held before the game began.