Pakistan Playing XI vs South Africa- 1st Test, South Africa Tour of Pakistan 2025
Published - 11 Oct 2025, 03:55 PM | Updated - 11 Oct 2025, 04:00 PM
Table of Contents
Pakistan will take on South Africa in the first of the two-match Test series. This article provides details about Pakistan's Playing 11 vs South Africa for the first match of the series.
Pakistan Playing XI vs South Africa- 1st Test, South Africa Tour of Pakistan 2025:
Openers: Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq
Pakistan would like to get off to a good start in the first game of the two-match Test series against South Africa, scheduled to begin on Sunday (October 12).
The team will be led by Shan Masood, who was appointed as the captain of the Test team in 2023.
Although Pakistan hasn't had a good outing in the longest format of the game in the last couple of years, with series losses at home, it would take confidence from the fact that they were able to draw a series last time they played at home.
The home team would like to put their best foot forward in an attempt to take an early lead against the World Test Championship winners.
Pakistan is expected to open the innings with the pair of Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq.
Shafique has a good record in Test matches played at home and would want to add to that, while his partner Imam-ul-Haq, who will be featuring in a Test match after a long time and would look to make the most of it.
Middle-order batsmen and all-rounders: Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Aamir Jamal
The opening pair will be followed by an experienced middle order, which includes the likes of current Test captain Shan Masood and former captain Babar Azam, who is making a comeback in the Test team.
The duo would wish to score big, and for that to happen, they would need the support of Saud Shakeel Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha.
A lot will depend on Salman Ali Agha, who has been in good form in the last year or so in this format of the game while batting at number six or seven, and has forged valuable partnerships with lower-order batters.
The T20I captain would want to do more of the same, especially if the team undergoes a collapse, which has been a common occurrence in the recent past.
Bowlers: Shaheen Afridi, Noman Ali, Sajid Khan
If we talk about the bowling lineup, it sees the return of experienced fast bowler Shaheen Afridi, along with Aamir Jamal, who has been struggling with injuries since his breakout performance in Australia.
The fast bowling duo will be entrusted to pick wickets with the new ball and make things easy for the spinners.
As far as the spin bowling department is concerned, it will be handled by two bowlers who picked up all 20 wickets in the first Test against the West Indies and took the team to a memorable win.
Noman Aki and Sajid Khan would hope to keep up the good work against a strong South African batting lineup that will play a Test match after the two-Test tour of Zimbabwe.
Tagged:
Pakistan National Cricket Team South Africa National Cricket Team Pakistan vs South Africa South Africa vs Pakistan Shan Masood Aiden Markram ICC World Test Championship
