Pakistan vs South Africa: Openers falter, Steyn rewrite history

Pakistan opening pair of Fakhar Zaman and Imam ul Haq failed to give their side a strong opening after falling chea
Updated 26 Dec, 2018

Pakistan opening pair of Fakhar Zaman and Imam ul Haq failed to give their side a strong opening after falling cheaply against South Africa in the first Test at Centrion on Wednesday.

Opening batsman Imam ul Haq was the first to perish, who was given lbw on the delivery of Kagiso Rabada on naught. Meanwhile, fellow opener Zaman followed after he was caught by Dean Elgar on 12 off Dale Steyn delivery.

In doing so, Steyn became the most successful South African Test bowler, overtaking former captain Sahun Pollack's tally of 421 Test wickets.

Earlier, skipper Sarfraz Ahmed opted to bat first against South Africa. Pakistan lineup suffered yet another blow after batsman Haris Sohail was ruled out on the morning of the match with a knee problem. He was replaced by Shan Masood.

Playing XI:

South Africa: Dean Elgar, Aiden Markram, Hashim Amla, Faf du Plessis (c), Theunis de Bruyn, Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock (wk), Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Dale Steyn, Duanne Olivier

Pakistan: Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Shan Masood, Azhar Ali, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Sarfraz Ahmed (c & wk), Mohammad Amir, Yasir Shah, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi

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