Dupont picked at 10 amid France fly-half crisis

Antoine Dupont will start at fly-half for France against world champions South Africa in Paris on Friday, despite having limited experience in the position. Coach Fabien Galthie chose the France captain amid injuries to four regular options, making the selection a significant test ahead of a difficult match-up.

Matthieu Jalibert, Romain Ntamack, Thomas Ramos and Antoine Hastoy are unavailable; Ntamack injured his shoulder during France’s 54-17 win over Fiji. Maxime Lucu, who recently started at fly-half for Bordeaux-Begles, will play at scrum-half, while London-born Aaron Grandidier-Nkanang earns his fourth cap on the wing after winning Olympic sevens gold with Dupont in 2024. South Africa have made one change after beating Italy 66-7, and have won nine of their past 10 Tests against France.