India pace bowler Zaheer Khan dismissed South Africa captain Graeme Smith for the sixth time in nine Tests before rain forced the players off the field after only nine overs on the opening day of the third test on Sunday.
Smith had scored six when he played a hesitant drive at the left-arm swing bowler down the wrong line. The ball shaped to go away but then nipped back in, hitting the left-hander on the back pad in front of his stumps.
Rain started to fall 15 minutes later and the players left the field with South Africa 21 for one after being asked to bat first. Zaheer had taken one for seven in five overs of top-class swing bowling.
India, the world’s top-ranked side, made one change with opening batsman Gautam Gambhir returning for Murali Vijay after a hand injury ruled him out of the second test in Durban last week. The three-match series is tied 1-1.