Cape Town - After a disastrous start, losing a wicket in the first over of the day, South Africa managed to reach 51 for two at lunch on the opening day of the third Castle Test against England at Newlands on Sunday.
Light rain caused the toss to be delayed by 45 minutes. England won the toss, and in overcast conditions which promised to help the bowlers, chose to send South Africa in to bat.
South Africa - who have to win the Test to save the series - made the much anticipated decision to drop iconic player Makhaya Ntini. The only black member of the team, who played his 100th Test in the first match in Centurion, was unable to take a wicket in South Africa's massive defeat in Durban last week, and speculation that he was about to be dropped had been rife.
Both coach Mickey Arthur and captain Graeme Smith acknowledged beforehand that dropping Ntini was a sensitive issue, but said hard decisions had to be made because South Africa needed the best possible team to win the Test.
England, who totally outplayed South Africa in Durban, got off to a brilliant start when makeshift opener Ashwell Prince was caught behind by Matthew Prior off James Anderson from the fourth ball of the first over.
Smith had a narrow escape in the next over, when Man of the Match in the first two Tests, Graeme Swann, dropped him in Graham Onions' first over.
The ball went straight to Swann, hit him in the midriff and he was unable to hang on.
Smith and Hashim Amla put on 45 runs together for the second wicket, but with the lunch break in sight, Amla was trapped lbw to Onions for 14.
At lunch, Smith was not out on 30 and Jacques Kallis had one.
Scoreboard:
Ashwell Prince c Prior b Anderson 0
Graeme Smith not out 30
Hashim Amla lbw b Onions 14
Jacques Kallis not out 1
Extras: (5lb, 1nb) 6
TOTAL (for two wickets) 51
Overs: 19.
Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-46.
Bowling: James Anderson 6-1-11-1 (1nb), Graham Onions 8-2-23-1, Stuart Broad 5-2-12-0.
Toss: England.
Umpires: Tony Hill, New Zealand, and Daryl Harper, Australia.
TV umpire: Aleem Dar, Pakistan. Match referee: Roshan Mahanama, Sri Lanka.