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Graeme Smith showed that his head was still cool, calm and collected when he won the toss and elected to bat first amid all the hype and hullabaloo at the Wanderers on Friday morning.

Smith was celebrating his 32^nd birthday and also the momentous milestone of becoming the first cricketer to play 100 Tests as captain, so Johannesburg, his place of birth, was  abuzz with tributes and Biff-mania.

There was a great sense of expectation that the world’s number one side would honour their magnificent leader by blowing Pakistan away at the Bullring and the pitch was sporting enough grass for many to back the idea of unleashing the potent South African pace attack.

But Smith, courageously and unselfishly, saw the cracks already present and reckoned it would be preferable to bat out a tough opening session rather than have to bat last.

It was the correct decision for the team, despite Smith, as an opening batsman, having to come out and face the music straight away.

The left-hander was by no means on top of his game, but he and Alviro Petersen added 46 for the first wicket as they saw off the new ball in the first hour-and-a-half. South Africa were on their way and, even though Smith (24) and Petersen (20) fell within five balls of each other before lunch, Hashim Amla and Jacques Kallis put the hosts back on top as they carried them to 125 for two midway through the afternoon session.

But the South African batsmen seemed to have other matters on their minds – could they have been distracted by all the Smith hype? – and they frittered away their remaining eight wickets for just 128 runs, nothwithstanding a 64-run fifth-wicket stand between AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis.

It was a similar experience for a Wanderers crowd of just under 10 000 on Friday to the much-anticipated Test against Australia in 2011 when South Africa, 1-0 in the two-match series, won the toss, batted first and were bowled out for 266 in just 71 overs on the first day by an attack that was one man short. South Africa were 122 for two and 241 for four on that day, and a less cavalier attitude would have seen them score at least 400 and shut Australia out of a series they went on to share.

After De Villiers and Du Plessis fell just before the second new ball was due, Dean Elgar was left alone with the tail and when he tickled off-spinner Mohammad Hafeez down the leg-side into the gloves of impressive wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed, the off-spinner was able to run through the lower-order and finish with a career-best four for 16.

Lady Luck had not smiled on the left-hander and she was also blamed for the dismissal of Du Plessis, who felt that the delivery that he had played on to his stumps from Junaid Khan had kept low.

But there was no doubting South Africa’s batsmen had put on a distracted, unfocused display, while Pakistan were disciplined with the ball, brilliant in the field and thoroughly deserved their success.

“From 199 for four, we should have got more and there was not enough from the bottom six, but it was quite tough for batsmen coming in. We were looking for 320 as par, but when AB and myself were together we thought we could get 350 which would have been very good. We got ourselves in position … ” Du Plessis said.

To get only 253 was a particularly poor effort when one considers everyone in the top seven made at least 20, but Kallis was the top-scorer with just 50. Smith and Kallis both played badly-executed shots, although Asad Shafiq, who had to make considerable ground around the leg-side boundary, took a fine catch to dismiss the latter.

Everything Pakistan captain Misbah ul-Haq touched turned to gold on Friday and even part-time medium-pacer Younis Khan was able to make a crucial breakthrough when he removed Amla for 37, thanks to Azhar Ali hanging on to a screamer at gully.

The current Proteas management fobs off criticism of their decision to make De Villiers keep wicket and play a specialist batsman at seven, but there is a hint that the policy is engendering a rather devil-may-care attitude amongst the top-order. With so many batsmen, there seems to be a feeling that someone else can finish the job if I score a breezy 40, much like the 90 for five syndrome in the 1990s when South Africa had tremendous batting depth with Shaun Pollock, Lance Klusener and Nicky Boje in the lower-order.

Pakistan openers Hafeez and Nasir Jamshed fended off an over apiece from Vernon Philander and Dale Steyn at the end of the day and the South African attack will need to strike early on the second morning if they are make up for an off-colour display by their batsmen.

Questions will be asked as to just how mentally sharp South Africa were on the opening day and it is difficult to shrug off the feeling that they were distracted by all the hype around Smith. Hopefully the Proteas can return to their clinical best on Saturday and ensure Smith has a suitable celebration.

Opener Alastair Cook was in complete control as his unbeaten century put England in a strong position on 267 for three at stumps on the first day of the first Test against South Africa at the Oval in London on Thursday.

Having suffered the shock of losing his captain Andrew Strauss in the first over, Cook compiled a superbly-controlled 114 not out to put England in control against a South African attack that lacked energy and spark – their limited preparation being the obvious bearer of the guilt for that.

It had all started so well for the tourists when Strauss, having initially been reprieved by umpire Steve Davis, was condemned by the review which showed Morne Morkel had trapped him lbw for a duck with the fourth ball of the day.

But South Africa’s response to the breakthrough was lax – Dale Steyn was only introduced in the 11th over and there was a glaring lack of interrogating, hostile fast bowling.

Cook and Jonathan Trott steadied and then rebuilt the innings, taking England to 70 for one at lunch. They batted through the second session, Cook reaching his fifty first in 137 minutes and 98 balls, with Trott following an hour later off 190 minutes and 127 balls.

Trott was impressive as he played the ball late and worked anything back-of-a-length through the leg side to good effect.

He eventually fell in the fifth over after tea as he was drawn into a drive at Morkel, who had found the perfect length and gained a bit of away movement to find the edge, presenting wicketkeeper AB de Villiers with an easy catch. Trott had made the South Africans work hard for his wicket, scoring 71 off 162 balls and he stroked nine boundaries.

Cook had shared in a key second-wicket stand of 170 off 348 balls with Trott, and he would bat on through to stumps, collecting 11 fours and a six off his 283 deliveries.

Kevin Pietersen replaced Trott at the wicket and kept the momentum going England’s way as he breezed to 42 off 72 balls. But his team would have loved the controversial former South African to bat through to the close; instead he got himself out in the over before the second new ball was due.

There was very little pace and bounce in the sluggish pitch for the fast bowlers, but the admirable Jacques Kallis really bent his back and dug in the 79-over-old ball, Pietersen went for the hook and will be filthy with himself for just lamely gloving a catch to De Villiers.

Ian Bell (10*) survived nine overs of the second new-ball with Cook and South Africa will be desperate to remove the in-form ginger and the brilliant left-hander early on the second morning.

Cook, compact and simple in his approach, left the ball brilliantly and punished anything loose with aplomb.

Morkel was the most successful of the South African bowlers with 2-44 in 18 overs, but the performances of the underdone Steyn and the loose Imran Tahir were disappointing.

http://www.supersport.com/cricket/sa-team/news/120719/Cook_England_in_control

Alastair Cook brought up his 20th Test century to steer England to a dominant 267 for three at stumps on the first day of the first test against South Africa at the Oval in London on Thursday.

85th over – Ian Bell gets underway with a marvellous, controlled push through the covers for four off a Dale Steyn away-swinger. Three balls later, Steyn tries to bounce Bell, but the batsman gets well on top of the ball and hooks for four more runs.

80th over – WICKET – What a wicket for Kallis to get and with the new ball available at the end of the over! The great all-rounder with the golden arm really digs in a bouncer, Pietersen goes for the hook but is cramped and can only glove a catch to wicketkeeper AB de Villiers. Pietersen’s 42 off 72 balls kept England’s momentum going … and threatened to take the day well and truly away from South Africa.

76th over – Stand and deliver from Pietersen as he lashes Kallis straight back down the ground for four.

73rd over – Imran Tahir drops short again and Pietersen bashes him over wide mid-on for a one-bounce four.

71st over – Cook goes to 99 with a cut for two runs off Tahir and there is still a huge gap in the covers for him to just push a single off the next ball and reach his 20th Test century, in just over five hours, from 222 balls. Pietersen then gets a couple of runs behind square-leg to bring up the fifty partnership off 81 deliveries.

69th over – Rubbish from Tahir as his long-hop is swatted through wide mid-on for four by Cook.

68th over – Impressive from Pietersen as he crunches a pull off Steyn with great power and timing, beating deep midwicket for four.

66th over – Four more for Cook as he clips Steyn crisply off his legs, with sweet timing.

64th over – A bit of width from Steyn and Pietersen throws the bat at the ball, edging it over the slips and away for his first boundary.

63rd over – A lovely shot by Cook as his on-drive goes past the left-hand of bowler Vernon Philander and scurries away for to the boundary.

58th over – WICKET – Morkel hits the right length, drawing Trott into the drive, but he’s reaching for the ball, not to the pitch, there’s a bit of away movement and the edge goes through to wicketkeeper AB de Villiers. Trott made his former countrymen toil for his wicket, scoring 71 off 162 balls.

56th over – A long-hop from Morkel and Cook cuts it away for four.

Afternoon session

England surged to 158 for one at tea on a pitch that held no surprises on the first day of the first Test against South Africa at the Oval in London on Thursday.

52nd over – Too short again from Imran Tahir and Jonathan Trott swats it from outside off stump, through wide mid-on for four.

51st over – Full and wide from Jacques Kallis and Trott latches on to it with a lovely square-drive for four.

46th over – Trott reached his 11th Test 50 in the previous over and now he celebrates with a magnificent off-drive for his sixth four, Dale Steyn being the bowler.

39th over – Tahir drops his googly short and Trott whips it through square-leg for four.

31st over – Tahir is back, but starts with two horrible long-hops, the second of which is also a no-ball which Alastair Cook heaves over wide mid-on for four, bringing up his fifty in 137 minutes, off 98 balls, with seven fours and a six.

29th over – Super batting by Cook as he starts the Steyn over with successive boundaries – a super square-cut followed by an immaculate back-foot push straight down the ground.

28th over – Too short from Vernon Philander and Trott dispatches a front-foot pull over wide mid-on for four.

25th over – Cook gets going after lunch with a superb cover-drive for four off Steyn.

Morning session

South Africa struck early but then bowled a little too wide of the stumps as England reached 70 for one at lunch on the first day of the first Test at the Oval in London on Thursday.

21st over – Frustration for Dale Steyn as he catches Jonathan Trott on the pad, the appeal is turned down and one leg-bye then becomes five as AB de Villiers’ rather wild throw to the bowler’s end eludes Morne Morkel backing up and goes to the boundary. The next ball goes for six as Alastair Cook top-edges a pull shot over deep backward square-leg!

18th over – Neatly played by Trott as he tucks a back-of-a-length delivery from Jacques Kallis off his hips, through midwicket for four – super timing.

16th over – Fifty up for England as Trott drives Kallis handsomely off the back foot, through the covers for four.

14th over – Kallis joins the attack, but his second ball is a wretched delivery, short and wide, and Alastair Cook slaps it through the covers for four.

11th over – Steyn is brought into the attack and Cook slashes the last ball of the over through gully for four.

9th over – Another excellent review system decision by South Africa as Morne Morkel slants a delivery into Trott, who misses his flick to leg and is struck on the pad. Umpire Steve Davis turns down the appeal and South Africa decide not to ask for the review. It’s a good call as the replay shows the ball just clipping leg stump and South Africa woul have lost one of their two reviews.

5th over – Cook’s first boundary is also streaky, reaching for a drive as Morkel continues from around the wicket, the ball holding its line and being edged through gully towards the shed which the bowler so famously walked into after being dismissed in his previous test at the Oval!

4th over – Four more runs for Trott, but via the outside edge between the slips and gully, but all along the ground, off Vernon Philander.

3rd over – Oh-uh … A tidy second over from Morkel, but with two no-balls …

2nd over – Philander surprisingly takes the new ball ahead of Steyn and Cook pushes a delivery outside leg stump through midwicket to get off the mark with three runs.

1st over – Not the greatest start by Morkel as umpire Steve Davis has a word with him after his first ball, bowled from around the wicket, for running on the pitch. His second ball is way wide down leg, well-taken by AB de Villiers behind the stumps. WICKET – Now it’s a great start as Morkel angles a delivery back into the left-hander, Strauss plays across the ball and is struck below the roll on the front foot. Morkel’s half-hearted appeal is not enough to convince Davis, but De Villiers and captain Graeme Smith behind the wicket decide to review and England’s skipper is out for a duck! Trott comes in, takes his time to get ready as usual and Smith tries to put him under pressure by complaining to the umpires. Nevertheless, Trott drives his first delivery, full and angled in, beautifully through mid-on for four.

South Africa wasted a sure start in tricky conditions to slump to 191 for seven at stumps on the first day of the first test against New Zealand at the University Oval in Dunedin on Wednesday.

Too many of the South African batsmen rinsed their hands of the responsibility of batting all day – on a shortened day of 59 overs – instead settling for all-too-brief displays of authority that did not wrest the advantage away from a New Zealand side that was typically determined and astute.

Captain Graeme Smith dominated the first session after South Africa had lost the toss and been sent in to bat two hours before tea, rain having washed out the entire morning session, and had reached tea on 53 not out from just 69 balls.

The left-hander profited from some confused lines of attack from the New Zealand bowlers, but his team never recovered from the rash shot he played in the first over after the break as the home side claimed six wickets from 33 overs to end the day in charge.

Trent Boult, the left-arm seamer, had claimed the first wicket of the day when he trapped Alviro Petersen lbw for 11, but it was the only success for New Zealand in a mediocre first session that saw Smith and Hashim Amla take their team through to the interval on 86 for one.

The drama started almost immediately after the break as Chris Martin claimed three wickets in four balls to send South Africa crashing to 90 for four.

Smith was the first to fall, failing to add to his score at tea. Martin beat Smith with a couple of fine away-swingers outside off stump and then, when he dished up a wide half-volley, Smith’s instinctive reaction was to lash out and try and impose himself again.

But the ball was so wide and going further away that Smith could not hit it cleanly, instead offering a straightforward catch to Rob Nicol at a shortish cover.

Martin began his next over in brilliant fashion as he whistled a delivery on to the shoulder of a squared-up Jacques Kallis’s bat, Ross Taylor diving to his left at first slip to take a sharp catch as the ball flew between him and wicketkeeper Kruger van Wyk.

Kallis being dismissed for a duck should have caused some alarm in the complacent South African camp, but AB de Villiers was slow to react to his first delivery, not moving his feet and playing all around a delivery that jagged back into him from Martin.

Unfortunately for New Zealand, while Amla and Jacques Rudolph were battling to see off Martin at the one end, they made merry against the undisciplined bowling of Tim Southee and Boult at the other.

SLAP-DASH CRICKET

The overcast skies under which South Africa had been sent in were beginning to clear though and, counter-intuitively, conditions became more sporty for the bowlers as the day warmed up.

One of the most rivetting contests of the day was between veteran left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori and Amla.

The Bearded Wonder had played some typically thrilling strokes in his 62, which included eight fours and a six off Vettori, but you always sensed he was trying to over-attack the canny former New Zealand captain.

Amla’s concentration lapsed – like so many of his teammates – as he tried to cut the fourth ball after the drinks break and edged Vettori, Van Wyk gloving the ball to slip Taylor.

South Africa’s slap-dash cricket was particularly prevalent in their running between the wickets, where they took many ill-judged risks and a run out was always on the cards.

It finally came in the 44th over with the demise of Mark Boucher, who did not get much of a chance to silence his critics as he hit his first ball for four and was run out off his second.

A crazy single to backward point and the quick reactions of Doug Bracewell enabled the South African-born Van Wyk, who left for New Zealand as he found his career blocked by Boucher, to get his name on the scorecard in his debut test and, coincidentally, his 100th first-class match.

Van Wyk, a contemporary of Rudolph’s at Affies and the Titans, showed slick glovework to gather Bracewell’s throw on the bounce and quickly break the stumps to catch Boucher just short of his ground.

Bracewell also always seemed to be doing something with the ball and gained his reward when he got Dale Steyn out for nine, a fine away-swinger, that also bounced more than expected, being edged to second slip, where it burst through Martin Guptill’s hands but went to Taylor at first slip, very nearly slipping through his grasp as well.

NO-BALL WICKET

Bracewell could easily have had Rudolph out on 32 in his previous over, seemingly trapping the left-hander plumb lbw. But the intervention of the third umpire, after the on-field umpire had refused the appeal, led to the exposé that the bustling seamer had over-stepped the line and bowled a no-ball.

Rudolph (46*) and Vernon Philander (4* off 37 balls) then steered South Africa to stumps in sombre fashion, a stark contrast to the shot-making parties that the top-order seemed to be enjoying.

Rudolph has looked composed and in the proper test cricket frame of mind of wearing down the bowlers, while Philander won many admirers for his restraint and dogged defence late in the day.

Martin was the best of the New Zealand bowlers with three for 34 in 14 overs, but the important work done by Vettori (15-4-31-1) and Bracewell (14-2-39-1) in stemming the run-flow and frustrating the batsmen should not be underestimated.

The South Africans have much work to do to prevent the impression that they have once again badly underestimated the fighting qualities of seemingly inferior opposition.