Imam and Masood guide Pakistan to 107-1 at lunch against South Africa in 1st test

LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — Imam-ul-Haq struck a fluent half century in his comeback to test cricket as Pakistan reached a confident 107-1 in the opening session of the first test against world champion South Africa on Sunday.

Imam, who played his last test against Australia in late 2023, was unbeaten on 59 off 89 balls and captain Shan Masood was not out on 44 at lunch on an abrasive wicket at Gaddafi Stadium in the first test of the new World Test Championship cycle for both teams.

Both left-handers counterattacked South Africa after Kagiso Rabada won a lbw decision against Abdullah Shafique (2) through television referral off the third ball after Masood won the toss and elected to bat.

Masood smashed two boundaries off Rabada on either side of the wicket from his first two balls and countered the three spinners by using his feet well against the slow bowlers.

South Africa included three spinners on a wicket devoid of lively grass and had plenty of cracks. But Masood welcomed Prenelan Subrayen with a straight six once captain Aiden Markram brought on his slow bowlers in only the sixth over.

Off-spinner Simon Harmer, playing his first test after more than two years, got plenty of turn and beat the outside edge of Masood a number of times before both batters went through the first session unscathed.

Imam raised his 10th test half century off 65 balls with a single of Harmer to mid-off and hit five fours as South Africa couldn’t separate the pair before lunch.

South Africa is coming off a 10-match winning streak that saw Temba Bavuma lead the side to the WTC title at Lord’s in a five-wicket victory over Australia in the final.

Bavuma will miss the two-test series due to a calf injury he sustained during the limited-overs series against England, with Aiden Markram stepping in as skipper for the Proteas.

Pakistan came into the new WTC cycle with only three wins in its last 12 test matches. Off-spinner Sajid Khan has recovered from flu and will pair with left-arm spinner Noman Ali to counter a strong South African batting lineup with Salman Ali Agha providing another spin option for the home team.

Fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi will be playing his first test in a year while Pakistan also included paceman Hasan Ali, who last played in this format against Australia at Sydney in January 2024.

Gaddafi Stadium is hosting only its second test match since test cricket returned to Pakistan in 2019 after a decade in hiatus.

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AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket