South Africa have bookended a solid start in the first session with a more measured, subdued final session, as Bangladesh were made to toil hard with their bowling and fielding.
Ebadot Hossain returned to remove debutant Ryan Rickelton shortly after tea. The left-hander spliced a pull, offering the easiest of catches for the captain at mid-on. From then on, Temba Bavuma and Kyle Verreynne calmly batted through the remainder of the overs, stitching up a neat 53-run partnership to close it out.
Bavuma reached his 18th Test half-century, and his rich form since the India series has continued. Verreynne has played a pretty useful hand so far, and the aim for tomorrow will be to extend this stand and firmly take control.
What appeared to be a mixed day has tilted slightly in favor of the hosts, but there are potentially four more days of cricket to go, with a threat of weather delays. Bad light brought an end to Day 1, but the Proteas can definitely be proud of their effort today. It all began with Elgar’s quick 67 and a steady contribution from Erwee, and that has set up a good chance to turn this total into a much larger one.
SA 233/4 in 76.5 overs (Elgar 67, Bavuma 53*)
