Kagiso Rabada inflicted heavy early damage on Bangladesh, claiming five wickets as the visitors ended the opening day of the first Test at the Wanderers in Johannesburg on Sunday at 221 for five. The 31-year-old paceman collected his 18th five-wicket haul in Test cricket.
Bangladesh won the toss and chose to bat in the opener of the two-match series, but Rabada struck immediately. He dismissed debutant Mahfijul Islam with the very first ball of the match, with Marco Jansen taking a catch at gully. It was the fourth time South Africa had taken a wicket with the opening delivery of a Test.
Rabada cuts through Bangladesh’s top order
Rabada went on to remove Mominul Haque for a duck, with Ryan Rickelton completing the catch behind the stumps. He then dismissed captain Najmul Hossain Shanto for 12, leaving Bangladesh 22 for three.
After lunch, Rabada got rid of Tanzid Hasan, who had scored 67 off 108 deliveries, and then Mushfiqur Rahim with the next ball.
Hridoy and Das steady the innings
Towhid Hridoy resisted the South African attack, registering his third consecutive Test half-century to keep Bangladesh in the contest. He was unbeaten on 78 off 142 balls, while wicketkeeper-batter Litton Das was not out on 48 from 64 deliveries.
Bangladesh reached 221 for five after 57.4 overs in the final session.
