1st Test: Pakistan beat South Africa in Lahore thriller
What's the story
Pakistan beat South Africa in the first of the three-match Test series at Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium. Chasing 277, the Proteas were bowled out for 183 on Day 4. While Pakistan won by 93 runs, all 20 wickets fell in the Test. Noman Ali and Shaheen Afridi took four wickets each, denying South Africa the victory. Here are the key stats.
Match summary
How the match panned out
Electing to bat first, Pakistan racked up 378, with Imam-ul-Haq and Salman Agha scoring 93 runs each. Senuran Muthusamy recorded a six-fer. Despite Tony de Zorzi's ton, SA responded with a below-par 269. Noman Ali took six wickets. Pakistan folded for 167 in the second innings, setting a 277-run target. Muthusamy recorded another fifer. SA faltered in the chase despite recovering from 55/4.
Do you know?
SA's unbeaten run ends
Pakistan ended South Africa's 10-match winning streak in Test cricket. The Proteas, the 2023-25 ICC World Test Championship (WTC) winners, last lost a Test in February 2024. They defeated Australia in the WTC final at Lord's in June this year.
Six-fer
Record six-fer for Noman Ali
Noman Ali's spell on Day 3 wasn't just about match impact; it was historic. His 6/112 are now the best bowling figures for Pakistan against South Africa in home Tests. According to ESPNcricinfo, Ali now has the most innings fifers among left-arm spinners in Test cricket (9), surpassing Iqbal Qasim's record of eight. Pervez Sajjad trails Qasim with three such hauls.
Information
Third-best match figures in Tests
In the second innings, Ali conceded 79 runs from his 28 overs, having taken four wickets. The spinner's 10/191 are now his third-best match figures in the format. Only once has he taken more than 10 wickets in a Test (11/147 vs England, Multan, 2024).
Century
De Zorzi rescues SA in Lahore
Earlier, de Zorzi raced to his maiden Test century against Pakistan. He scored a 171-ball 104 (10 fours and 2 sixes). It marked the first time a South African scored a century in Pakistan since 2021. Before De Zorzi, the last South African to score a Test hundred against Pakistan was Aiden Markram, who slammed 108 in Rawalpindi in February 2021.
Muthusamy
Best match haul for Muthusamy
Muthusamy was the pick of SA's bowlers in the second innings, taking 5/57 in 17 overs (1 maiden). He shone with figures worth 6/117 in the first innings. Muthusamy's 11/174 are now his best returns in a Test match. The Proteas spinner now has 22 wickets from six Tests at an average of 25.22. He completed his maiden 10-wicket haul in the format.
Information
Muthusamy joins this elite club
According to ESPNcricinfo, Muthusamy also recorded the fourth-best Test match haul by a South African spinner. He is only behind Hugh Tayfield (13/165 vs Australia in 1952 and 13/192 vs England in 1957) and Keshav Maharaj (12/283 vs Sri Lanka in 2018).
Brevis
Brevis slams his maiden Test fifty in Asia
After falling for a golden duck, Brevis slammed a counter-attacking half-century in the second innings. The young talent came back strong to score a run-a-ball 54 (6 fours and 2 sixes). He reached his maiden Test half-century in Asia. Across five Test innings, Brevis has racked up 138 runs at an average of 27.60. His tally includes a healthy strike rate of 98.57.
Afridi
Afridi gets to 120 Test wickets
Afridi was the pick of Pakistan's bowlers in the final innings, taking 4/33 in 8.5 overs (1 maiden). He took the final two South African wickets within three balls. Playing his 32nd Test, Afridi raced to 120 wickets in the format. He averages a phenomenal 27.35 with 4 fifers to his name. Afridi's economy rate in Tests read 3.15.