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Proteas to go with Tahir

Cape Town - Leg-spinner Imran Tahir will play for the Proteas in the first Test against India at the Wanderers from Wednesday.

SA skipper Graeme Smith confirmed to the Beeld website that there will be only one change to the team that beat Pakistan in the UAE back in October.

Hashim Amla will replace Dean Elgar after missing South Africa's last Test due to his wife giving birth to their second child.

The pitch at the Wanderers is expected to give assistance to the seam bowlers but the Proteas nevertheless decided to go with the option of Tahir as well.

"Imran is bowling well and has a lot of confidence. However, it could be that the spinner's role is limited in this Test," said Smith.

There is enough grass on the pitch, but should it receive enough sunlight over the next few days, Tahir could play a key role later in the game.

Play starts at 10:30.

Teams:

South Africa: Graeme Smith (captain), Alviro Petersen, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Faf du Plessis, Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn, Morné Morkel, Imran Tahir.

India (likely): Shikhar Dhawan, Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, MS Dhoni (captain), Ravichandran Ashwin, Zaheer Khan, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma.
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