South Africa captain Faf du Plessis says he was disappointed at the booing he received from the Adelaide Oval crowd after making a superb hundred on day one of the third Test.

Du Plessis became an object of the crowd's ire in the week between the second and third Tests, when the ICC officially charged him with ball tampering for using a lolly to shine the ball in Hobart.

Despite a guilty verdict, du Plessis has continued to claim his innocence. Local crowds were less forgiving though, booing the Proteas skipper upon his entrance to the middle and on completion of his ton.

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"I was expecting it when I was walking out, perhaps it was more than I thought it would be," du Plessis told Grandstand.

"But to be really honest, I was really disappointed when I was 100 and I heard the crowd boo.

"I think in a moment like that you deserve a bit of a hats off for everything you've been through to do that.

"So I was a little bit disappointed with that, but I understand you can go a little bit over the top with things like that."

Du Plessis said this would probably remain "the most memorable hundred of my career" in light of a tumultuous week.

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He said he saw this Test as an opportunity to prove his character.

"As I said at the toss today, when talking about the week and the build up, you learn a lot about yourself and you get tested.

"This week was a huge test of my character, and the only way to quieten people down was to put in a big performance with the bat. So I'm really glad that happened today.

"I've never been so hungry to get a hundred as I was today."

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South Africa's Faf du Plessis is embraced by Kagiso Rabada after reaching his ton at the Adelaide Oval. ( AP: Rick Rycroft )

Once again du Plessis proved his tactical ingenuity with a timely declaration, which meant David Warner was not allowed to open the batting due to time he had previously spent off the field.

But was du Plessis actually aware of the situation?

"No I was aware of it," he wryly admitted.

"I saw him speaking to the umpire, so I put my ear a little bit closer to him and I soon as I heard he was in trouble with the time I ran off."