Overview
- Pakistan won the toss and chose to bat, reaching 107/1 at lunch with Imam-ul-Haq 59 not out alongside captain Shan Masood on 44.
- Pre-match uncertainty over Pakistan’s spin options ended with Sajid Khan declared fit to play, meaning 38-year-old Asif Afridi did not debut.
- South Africa fielded three specialist spinners — Simon Harmer, Senuran Muthusamy and Prenelan Subrayen — under stand-in captain Aiden Markram.
- Pakistan’s XI featured the returns of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, with Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hasan Ali leading the pace attack.
- The two-Test series launches both teams’ 2025–27 World Test Championship campaigns, with the second match scheduled in Rawalpindi from October 20.