South Africa captain Quinton de Kock won the toss and opted to bat in the first test against Pakistan in Karachi on Tuesday.
The two-match series marks South Africa's first tests in Pakistan since 2007.
It will also be the first time Babar Azam leads Pakistan in the test format after he was ruled out from the last series in New Zealand with a hand injury.
The hosts handed debuts to opening batsman Imran Butt and spinner Nauman Ali while South Africa suffered a late injury blow with spinner Tabraiz Shamsi ruled out after suffering back spasms in training.
Teams:
South Africa - Aiden Markram, Dean Elgar, Faf du Plessis, Rassie van der Dussen, Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock (captain), George Linde, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi
Pakistan - Abid Ali, Imran Butt, Azhar Ali, Babar Azam (captain), Fawad Alam, Mohammad Rizwan, Faheem Ashraf, Hassan Ali, Nauman Ali, Yasir Shah, Shaheen Afridi
(Reporting by Sudipto Ganguly in Mumbai; editing by Peter Rutherford)
