Durban, Mar 31 (AP) Bangladesh gained some ground with three wickets after lunch and South Africa was 165-3 on the first day of the opening test in Durban on Thursday.

Mehidy Hasan Miraz was central to Bangladesh's efforts in the second session by bowling opening batter Sarel Erwee for 41 and then pulling off a brilliant run out to get rid of Keegan Petersen for 19.

Also Read | Miami Open: Casper Ruud Enters Into Semis by Defeating Alexander Zverev.

South Africa captain Dean Elgar was the first wicket down when he edged behind off Khaled Ahmed for 67 soon after lunch.

Ryan Rickelton was 11 not out on his test debut and Temba Bavuma was with him at tea on 22 not out.

Also Read | IPL 2022: IPL 2022: Suryakumar Yadav Returns to Mumbai Indians Squad After Injury.

South Africa was solid at 95-0 at lunch as Bangladesh's bowlers initially struggled to find their range after putting the home team in to bat.

Elgar led the way after clipping the first delivery of the day for four to set the tone for that first session. He eventually hit 11 fours in his 67 off 101 balls.

But Bangladesh pulled it back in the afternoon, first with Elgar and Erwee falling in successive overs.

Petersen's wicket was Bangladesh's best as Miraz made a diving stop with one hand and then released a throw almost in the same movement to run Petersen out with a direct hit.

Bangladesh is aiming to follow up on its groundbreaking victory in the one-day international series last week, which was the first time it had won a series of any kind in South Africa.

Bangladesh's chances might also be aided by the fact that South Africa is missing a number of its top players to the Indian Premier League. The Proteas are without batsmen Aiden Markram and Rassie van der Dussen, pace bowlers Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi and Marco Jansen, and allrounder Dwaine Pretorius, who all opted to play in the IPL instead of the two-test series against Bangladesh.

That opened up an opportunity for Rickelton, and he hit a reverse sweep for four for his first runs in test cricket. Seamer Lizaad Williams is also making his test debut for South Africa, while spinner Simon Harmer was recalled for his first test since 2015.

Bangladesh is without opening batsman Tamim Iqbal, who captained the ODI team to its series victory. He is ill, while fast bowler Shoriful Islam was rested.

The start of the test was delayed for about 30 minutes at Kingsmead because of a problem with one of the sightscreens. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)