Pakistan will assume South Africa in the first of the two-match Test series. This article provides details of Pakistan’s Game 11 against South Africa for the first match of the series.
Pakistan Plays XI vs South Africa – 1st Test, South Africa Tour of Pakistan 2025:
Opening: Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq
Pakistan would like to get off to a good start in the first match of the two-match Test series against South Africa, which is scheduled to begin on Sunday (October 12).
The team will be led by Shan Masood, who has been named captain of the Test team in 2023.
Your daily dose of cricket!
Although Pakistan have not had a good outing in the longest format of the game in the last two years, with series defeats at home, it would take away confidence that they were able to draw the last time they played at home.
The home team would like to do their best to try and take an early lead against the World Test Championship winners.
Pakistan are expected to open the innings with the pair of Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq.
Shafique has a good record in Test matches played at home and would like to add to it, while his partner Imam-ul-Haq, who will be taking part in a Test match after a long time and would look to make the most of it.
Middle-order batsmen and all-rounders: Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Aamir Jamal
The opening pair will be followed by an experienced middle order, which includes current Test captain Shan Masood and former captain Babar Azam, who is making a return to the Test team.
The duo would like to score big, and for that, they would need the support of Saud Shakeel Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha.
A lot will depend on Salman Ali Agha, who has been in good form over the past year in this format of the game while batting at number six or seven, and has formed valuable partnerships with lower-order batters.
The T20I captain would like to do more of the same, especially if the team suffers a collapse, which has been common in the recent past.
Bowlers: Shaheen AFIDAN, Sajid Khan
If we talk about the bowling lineup, we see the return of experienced fast bowler Shaheen Afridi, along with Aamir Jamal, who has been struggling with injuries since his performance in Australia.
The fast bowling duo will be given the task of picking wickets with the new ball and making it easier for the spinners.
As far as the spin bowling department is concerned, it will be handled by two bowlers who took all 20 wickets in the first Test against the West Indies and led the team to a memorable victory.
Noman Aki and Sajid Khan will hope to continue their good work against a strong South African batting line-up who will play a Test match after the two-Test tour of Zimbabwe.
