With the pitch expected to offer pace, bounce and movement early on, it was a brave decision from the Dhoni, who was perhaps more worried about batting last on a wicket that already had some cracks.
South Africa made one change from the side that defeated Pakistan in their last test in October with batsman Hashim Amla replacing Dean Elgar.
Four players in the new-look Indian side have played just four tests or fewer with Zaheer Khan (89) and Dhoni (80) the two most experienced players in the side following Sachin Tendulkar's retirement last month.
The visitors selected a trio of pacemen in Zaheer Khan, Mohammed Shami and Ishant Sharma who they hope will be able to exploit the seamer-friendly conditions in South Africa.
Teams:
South Africa: Graeme Smith (captain), Alviro Petersen, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis, JP Duminy, Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Imran Tahir.
India: Shikhar Dhawan, Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, MS Dhoni (captain), Ravichandran Ashwin, Zaheer Khan, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma.
(Editing by Sudipto Ganguly)
