In cricket, a five-wicket haul (also known as a "five-for" or "fifer") refers to a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings. This is regarded as a significant achievement. As of September 2024, 174 cricketers have taken a five-wicket haul on their debut in a Test match, with eleven of them being taken by Pakistani players. They have taken a five-wicket haul on debut against seven different opponents: three times against New Zealand and Australia, and once against Bangladesh, England, India, South Africa and Zimbabwe each. Of the eleven occasions, Pakistan won the match four times, and drew seven times. The players have taken five-wicket hauls at nine different venues, including six outside Pakistan; three of them have achieved the feat at the National Stadium, Karachi.
Arif Butt was the first Pakistani player to take a five-wicket haul on his Test debut, he took six wickets for 89 runs against Australia in 1964. Mohammad Nazir, Mohammad Zahid, and Abrar Ahmed are the only bowlers to have taken seven wickets each. Four bowlers have taken six wickets each and six others have taken five wickets on debut. Zahid took seven wickets for 66 runs, the best bowling figures by a Pakistani bowler on debut, against New Zealand in 1996, at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. He accumulated 11 wickets for 130 runs in the match, the first Pakistani to take 10 or more wickets in a Test match on debut. Amongst the bowlers, Noman Ali is the most economical, with 1.37 runs per over, and Zahid has the best strike rate. As of 2023, the most recent bowler to achieve the feat is Aamer Jamal. He took six wickets for 111 runs against Australia in 2023 at the Perth Stadium.
Abrar Ahmed became the first Pakistani bowler to take a five-wicket haul in the opening session of a test match and also on debut.
Key
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Date | Date the match was held, or starting date of the match for Test matches |
| Inn | The innings of the match in which the five-wicket haul was taken |
| Overs | Number of overs bowled in that innings |
| Runs | Runs conceded |
| Wkts | Number of wickets taken |
| Econ | Bowling economy rate (average runs per over) |
| Batsmen | The batsmen whose wickets were taken in the five-wicket haul |
| Result | The result for the Pakistan team in that match |
| † | Bowler selected as "Man of the match" |
| ‡ | 10 wickets or more taken in the match |
| Drawn | The match was drawn |
Five-wicket hauls
| No. | Bowler | Date | Ground | Against | Inn | Overs | Runs | Wkts | Econ | Batsmen | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arif Butt | 4 December 1964 | Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne |  Australia |
2 | 21.3 | 89 | 6 | 3.12 | Drawn | |
| 2 | Mohammad Nazir | 24 October 1969 | National Stadium, Karachi |  New Zealand |
2 | 30.1 | 99 | 7 | 3.28 | Drawn | |
| 3 | Shahid Nazir | 17 October 1996 | Sheikhupura Stadium, Sheikhupura |  Zimbabwe |
1 | 22.4 | 53 | 5 | 2.33 | Drawn | |
| 4 | Mohammad Zahid†‡ | 28 November 1996 | Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi | New Zealand |
4 | 20.0 | 66 | 7 | 3.30 | Won | |
| 5 | Shahid Afridi | 22 October 1998 | National Stadium, Karachi | Australia |
1 | 23.3 | 52 | 5 | 2.21 | Drawn | |
| 6 | Mohammad Sami† | 8 March 2001 | Eden Park, Auckland | New Zealand |
4 | 15.0 | 36 | 5 | 2.40 | Won | |
| 7 | Shabbir Ahmed | 20 August 2003 | National Stadium, Karachi |  Bangladesh |
3 | 18.1 | 48 | 5 | 2.64 | Won | |
| 8 | Yasir Arafat | 8 December 2007 | M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore |  India |
1 | 39.0 | 161 | 5 | 4.12 | Drawn | |
| 9 | Wahab Riaz | 18 August 2010 | The Oval, London |  England |
1 | 18.0 | 63 | 5 | 3.50 | Won | |
| 10 | Tanvir Ahmed | 20 November 2010 | Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi (neutral venue) |
 South Africa |
1 | 28.0 | 120 | 6 | 4.28 | Drawn | |
| 11 | Bilal Asif | 7 October 2018 | Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai (neutral venue) |
Australia |
1 | 21.3 | 36 | 6 | 1.67 | Drawn | |
| 12 | Noman Ali | 26 January 2021 | National Stadium, Karachi | South Africa |
2 | 25.3 | 35 | 5 | 1.37 | Won | |
| 13 | Abrar Ahmed | 9 December 2022 | Multan Cricket Stadium, Multan | England |
1 | 22 | 114 | 7 | 5.18 | Lost | |
| 14 | Aamer Jamal | 14 December 2023 | Perth Stadium, Perth | Australia |
1 | 20.2 | 111 | 6 | 5.45 | Lost |
See also
References
- Notes
- In cricket, strike rate is referred to the average number of deliveries bowled before a bowler takes a wicket.
- Specific
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... I'd rather take fifers (five wickets) for England ...
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