KANPUR, Nov 20: Makeshift opener Andrew Hall batted all day for 78 not out as South Africa reached 230 for four wickets on the opening day of the first Test against India on Saturday.

Hall, 29, kept India's triple spin attack at bay on a sluggish pitch by raising three fighting partnerships after captain Graeme Smith won the toss and elected to bat.

Leg-spinner Anil Kumble struck twice in each of the first two sessions to reduce the innings to 154 for four at tea, but South African batsmen showed application against spin at the cost of quick runs.

Hall has put on 76 for the unbroken fifth wicket with Boeta Dippenaar, 46 not out, to keep alive South African hopes of a big total.

He had raised 61 for the opening stand with Smith (37) in the morning and then added 85 with the experienced Jacques Kallis, who also made 37. Hall has faced 274 balls and struck nine fours.

Kumble had left-hander Smith playing on to his stumps and Martin van Jaarsveld leg before for two before claiming two more scalps, trapping Kallis lbw with new batsman Jacques Rudolph playing on to his stumps the next ball.

South Africa, rated the underdogs for the two-Test series, owed much to Hall.

The all-rounder, asked to open for the first time in Tests after Herschelle Gibbs pulled out of the tour, showed soft hands to tackle spin after India picked only one paceman, Zaheer Khan.

Hall hit captain Saurav Ganguly's slow medium for two fours and pulled Zaheer and cut Kumble for two fours to reach his third Test fifty.

He and Smith seemed set to see off the morning without any setback when Kumble broke through.

Smith, reprieved on 33 when wicket-keeper Dinesh Karthik dropped a tough bat-pad chance against off spinner Harbhajan Singh, then watched in dismay as the ball squeezed under his defensive shot to hit off-stump.

Kallis, playing only as a batsman because of a painful side injury, joined Hall to steady the innings.

The all-rounder completed 6,000 Test runs on 31, becoming only the second South African batsman behind Gary Kirsten to achieve the milestone.

But Kumble trapped Kallis with a straighter ball going for a sweep and then removed Rudolph to be on a hat trick.

Hall was dropped on 55 by Kumble at midwicket off Harbhajan, but kept his focus alongside Dippenaar as the pair frustrated the flagging Indian bowling attack until stumps.

"Hall showed tremendous discipline and considering that he is basically a stroke-player, his innings showed his commitment to the team's cause," said Smith.

"It was a good toss to win as batting first is always an advantage on the sub-continent but I am impressed at the way our batsmen batted," added the 23-year-old.

"Putting Hall up the order was a risk that paid off. Now we hope to build up a big first innings total and put India under pressure," he said.

"Their spinners bowled tight but Kumble was the only one who really troubled us," said Smith.

India went in with three spinners - Kumble, Harbhajan and Murali Kartik were the slow bowlers in the side.

All-rounder Zander de Bruyn and wicket-keeper Thami Tsolekile made their Test debuts for South Africa.

The second and final Test will be held in Kolkata from Nov 28.

Scoreboard