Asif Afridi, left-arm spinner of Pakistan, made history on Wednesday by becoming the oldest bowler to take a five-wicket haul on Test debut. The milestone was reached by the 38-year-old on Day 3 of the second Test Pakistan vs. South Africa match in Rawalpindi.
After a clever ball that resulted in Harmer being given LBW as the batter tried a reverse sweep, Afridi went down on one knee and thanked the Lord - an appropriate celebration for a debut of his dreams. In fact, he had already made the South African batsmen suffer through the entire morning session by his impeccable line and length, deceiving them with his variations, and getting them caught on the sticky turning track which was perfect for the spin bowler.
Game-changing spell turns the match Pakistan’s way as Asif Afridi shines
Afridi had already changed the momentum of the game to Pakistan's side before he eventually got rid of Harmer by knocking out the in-form Tristan Stubbs who was going for a very confident 76. Afridi had his off very first of the day when he got rid of Verreynne early by deceiving the wicketkeeper with a nicely flighted delivery that spun away just enough to find the edge in the very first over.
Day 2 was all about Afridi's fiery late burst which ended a 113-run partnership between Tony de Zorzi and Stubbs. Not long after de Zorzi reaching his fifty, he got his wicket and then sent Dewald Brevis back to the pavilion for a duck thus South Africa were 167/2 when the next two quick wickets took them to 171/4 and the lead was now with Pakistan.
Afridi was a top-class performer in Pakistan's domestic cricket, and he was a successful spinner from Peshawar, who took 198 wickets in 57 first-class matches at an average of 25.49 before finally making his Test debut. As he made his first-class debut in 2009, his appearances were very limited over the years, but a comeback in 2023 - which was dotted with several match-winning performances - got him back in contention for international cricket.
Nevertheless, his travel was riddled with obstacles. Afridi was once given a punishment by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for his involvement in a spot-fixing approach and he was six months in prison before he made a domestic cricket comeback, which was quite successful.
In the earlier part of the Test, Keshav Maharaj, South Africa, took seven wickets to bowl out Pakistan for 333, after that he caused a collapse of the middle-order which led the home team to a big first-innings total.
