The Proteas have never lost a Test match to Bangladesh in 14 outings, winning 12 and drawing two.
At 6am at the Mirpur Stadium in Dhaka this morning, stand-in captain Aiden Markram and his teammates will be out to extend that record when they cross swords with a Shakib Al Hasan-less Tigers team.
The 37-year-old, who was supposed to play in his farewell Test for his country, was withdrawn this weekend for fear for his safety in Dhaka.
With or without him, Bangladesh will provide a stern test for SA – especially with their spin attack.
How the visitors combat this will be key in the match, with Markram saying: “Spin has been the big talking point leading up to the [two-match] series – especially being from South Africa, we don’t get conditions like that at home.
“It’s an exciting challenge for us to face – especially as a team that is relatively young and a team that hasn’t played a Test match here before…”
The Proteas will be without captain Temba Bavuma for the first Test and could hand Dewald Brevis, who is an option to come in at No.7 or eight and spin the ball himself according to coach Shukri Conrad, a debut.
It is expected, however, that Ryan Rickelton will come in to beef up the middle order in place of Bavuma.