South Africa vs Australia 2018: 1st Test, day 1 - 5 things we learnt from the day

On a slow, un-South African wicket, Steven Smith and David Warner gobbled up half-centuries but couldn't quite get stuck into the hosts as Keshav Maharaj tied them down. The Proteas spinner came on to bowl as early as the eleventh over in the game and almost immediately reaped rewards. He took his first wicket post lunch, the crucial scalp of the indomitable Steven Smith and went on to add that of Shaun Marsh.

Earlier, David Warner made a typically flashy half-century while Steven Smith appeared in outstanding touch as Australia took advantage of batting first here at Durban. Vernon Philander dismissed Warner with the perfect set up and Smith's wicket later opened way for a vulnerable middle-order but Mitchell Marsh and Tim Paine held their own in an unbeaten 48 run stand before bad light stopped play.

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#5 David Warner's spectacular run in South Africa continues

Warner returned from injury to hurt the Proteas with a quickfire half-century

If any Australian loves South Africa as much as his home country, it has to be David Warner. The belligerent southpaw has made half-centuries at a jaw-dropping frequency in the country - six 50+ scores in seven innings' in South Africa including three hundreds and an average of 84.85. At Durban, Warner returning from injuring appeared in ominous touch although Vernon Philander tied him down early on with some tight bowling.

Warner got going soon after Morkel and Rabada started bowling short and although he survived a close lbw call off Maharaj, Warner appeared least perturbed and knocked off another 50+ score in the Rainbow Nation. However, any hopes of converting it into a big score ended when Vernon Philander set him up wonderfully shortly after his half-century.

#4 Smith falls to his nemesis - left-arm spin

Steven Smith dug into some listless Proteas bowling post lunch

Steven Smith has become synonymous with scoring big runs and he started off the African Safari with a spectacular, easy half-century, built on some strong shots off the back-foot and a few ballerina moves against Keshav Maharaj. South Africa tried everything from a leg-slip to a wide second slip to bowling changes against Smith but in vain.

The breakthrough, however, came when Maharaj returned to the bowling attack and had Smith caught out at first slip. This was the 19th instance of Smith getting dismissed to a left-arm spinner in Tests. Ravindra Jadeja had exploited this weakness of Smith in India and Maharaj did the same on a sluggish Kingsmead surface.

#3 Kagiso Rabada cranks up the pace gun

Kagiso Rabada clocked high on the pace gun early in his spell

If South Africa haven't quite mourned the constant injuries to Dale Steyn or the impending retirement of Morne Morkel, it is due to the towering presence of one man - Kagiso Rabada. The second highest wicket-taker of 2017 steamed in on day 1 at Durban and hit the 150kmph mark in his very first over.

Rabada had Usman Khawaja caught behind with a terrific delivery before beating the bat of Smith a couple of times. He consistently stormed into trouble the Aussies with searing pace and a mix of lengths, constantly keeping the batsmen guessing.

#2 Maharaj comes into his own on slow first day wicket

Maharaj led the Proteas attack on a slow wicket

There were talks of South Africa preparing slow, turning tracks for the Australian series to negate the trio of seamers in the visitor's side. A brownish Durban surface confirmed their plans and du Plessis reinstated the same by stating that Maharaj will have a lot of bowling to do this Test match at the toss.

The left-arm spinner was brought into the attack ahead of Kagiso Rabada as early as in the 11th over and almost immediately trapped David Warner in front with sharp turn off a foot mark. Steven Smith's nimble feet put him off early on and he was smashed for boundaries through mid-on and mid-wicket. A persistent du Plessis continued to probe Maharaj against Smith and eventually, the move paid off as the Aussie skipper nicked to the cordon.

The South African spinner returned after the tea break to eke out another edge off Shaun Marsh to cap off a fabulous day on a slow surface.

#1 Durban's poor turnout

Durban's turnout has been good in ODIs but not so much in Tests

In am an enthralling day of Test cricket, a sore thumb that stuck out at Kingsmead was the appallingly low turnout at the ground. Being a working day, there was scarcely anybody at the ground despite the high-profile nature of the series. Add to this the fact that at Durban the day gets darker pretty quickly and you wonder how good a Test venue this is.

Unlike Newlands or Wanderers, Durban isn't the most South African of pitches and is much sub-continental than many wickets in the country. The consistently poor turnout, bad light late in the day almost every time and a surface where Keshav Maharaj comes on to bowl in the 11th over on day 1 together mean that Durban, once an iconic venue, is losing its sheen.

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