In cricket, a five-wicket haul (also known as a "five–for" or "fifer")[1][2] refers to a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings. A five-wicket haul on debut is regarded by the critics as a notable achievement.[3][4] As of February 2024, 171 cricketers have taken a five-wicket haul on Test match debut,[5] out of which twenty-five were from the South Africa national cricket team.[6] The five-wicket hauls have come against six different opponents, and the South Africans have performed this feat fifteen times against England.[7] Of the twenty-two matches where a South African debutant has taken a five-wicket haul, twelve have ended in defeat, six in victory and the other four in a draw. The five-wicket hauls were taken at eleven different venues, six of them being taken at the Newlands Cricket Ground, Cape Town.[8]
Albert Rose-Innes was the first South African to take a five-wicket haul on Test cricket debut. He took 5 wickets for 43 runs against England in 1889.[a] In the second Test of the series, Gobo Ashley took 7 wickets for 95 runs, in what turned out to be his only appearance in Test cricket.[10] When the country was re-admitted to play competitive cricket in 1991, Lance Klusener became the first debutant to take a five-wicket haul.[b] His 8 wickets for 64 runs against India in November 1996 remain the best bowling figures in an innings by a South African on debut.[c] Sydney Burke and Alf Hall are the only South African debutants to collect 10 or more wickets in a match as of February 2015.[d][14] Klusener's figures, along with George Bissett's 5 for 37 runs, were included among the "Top 100 Bowling performances of all time" by the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack in 2002.[15] Neil Brand is the latest cricketer to achieve this feat; he took 6/119 against New Zealand in February 2024.[16]
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