Bangladesh won the toss and sent South Africa in to bat on the first day of the first Test at Kingsmead in Durban on Thursday. The visitors were without opening batsman Tamim Iqbal because of what captain Mominul Haque described as "stomach problems". Mominul said he decided to bowl because there was grass on the pitch and Bangladesh had confidence in their fast bowlers. South African captain Dean Elgar said he would have chosen to bat. "In Test cricket, I prefer to have runs on the board and with the make-up of our team we have two spinners on a ground which is known to take spin as the Test progresses."