Proteas continue to punish Bangladesh

Sep 28, 2017 - 1:31 PM South Africa have continued to punish Bangladesh's surprise decision to bowl first by reaching 1-198 at tea on day one of the first Test.

Dean Elgar is 101 not out while Aiden Markram was run out three runs short of a century on his Test debut. Markram hit 13 fours in his 97.

With coach Ottis Gibson in his first match in charge of South Africa, the hosts made steady progress after going to lunch on 99 without loss on Thursday.

Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim's decision to give South Africa's batsmen first use of the Senwes Park pitch was a surprise. The track in Potchefstroom is expected to be good for batting early and will likely get more difficult as the Test goes on.

Gibson, who was smiling on the South Africa team balcony as players came off for lunch, takes over the Proteas ahead of their busiest and most testing home season in a long time. The No.2-ranked South Africa play a two-Test series against Bangladesh, a one-off Test against Zimbabwe, then host top-ranked India and Australia in consecutive series.

Source: AAP