The first Test between South Africa and Pakistan will get underway on Thursday, December 26, at SuperSport Park, Centurion. Both teams are eyeing a crucial victory to bolster their chances of qualifying for the World Test Championship (WTC) final at Lord’s next year.

South Africa will be keen to bounce back after suffering a 3-0 clean sweep in the recently concluded ODI series against Pakistan. The Proteas, led by Temba Bavuma, will rely on their strong all-seam attack to get the upper hand in the two-match Test series. They need to win at least one of the remaining two matches in this WTC cycle to guarantee a spot in the final.

South Africa vs Pakistan 1st Tedt Match Details:

Match: South Africa vs Pakistan, 1st Test

Date: December 26, 2024

Venue: SuperSport Park, Centurion

Time: 01:30 PM IST/10:00 AM local

Where to Watch South Africa vs Pakistan 1st Test Match 2024 ?

Live Telecast: Sports18 network

Live Streaming: JioCinema website and app

South Africa have won the toss and have opted to fieldd

Shan Masood - There will be a lot for the seamers, but you get a lot of value for shots, play the conditions well and we're looking forward to it. We played some good cricket in similar conditions in Australia, but we didn't finish it off. We're very excited about playing here, they're on the cusp of getting into the #WTC final, so it's a good test for us. We have 7 batters and 4 bowlers, typical selection for us.

Temba Bavuma - We will bowl first. Bit of a tricky decision to make, the overhead conditions and what we expect the next two days took priority. The wicket looks hard and the divots shouldn't come into play with the forecast. Every series is important, but this is a bit more. The focus is on playing good cricket, we do have injuries, but Corbin Bosch comes in and we're backing our guys. We've had success with the seamers here, doesn't favour spin to be honest. Playing in the ideal South African conditions.

South Africa vs Pakistan Playing XI:

South Africa (Playing XI): Tony de Zorzi, Aiden Markram, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Temba Bavuma(c), David Bedingham, Kyle Verreynne(w), Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Kagiso Rabada, Dane Paterson

Pakistan (Playing XI): Shan Masood(c), Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Rizwan(w), Saud Shakeel, Salman Agha, Aamer Jamal, Naseem Shah, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas