List of international cricket five-wicket hauls by Shoaib Akhtar
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Shoaib Akhtar, a Pakistani former cricketer, took 16 five-wicket hauls during his career in international cricket. A five-wicket haul (also known as a "five–for" or "fifer")[1] refers to a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings. This is regarded as a notable achievement,[2] and as of October 2024[update], only 54 bowlers have taken 15 or more five-wicket hauls at international level in their cricketing careers.[3][4] A fast bowler who represented his country from 1997 to 2011, BBC described Shoaib as "one of the fastest bowlers ever to play the game".[5]
Shoaib made his Test debut in 1997 against the West Indies at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, where he took two wickets in the first innings.[6] His first Test five-wicket haul came the following year against South Africa, a match Pakistan won at the Kingsmead Cricket Ground, Durban.[7] Shoaib took a pair of five-wicket hauls against New Zealand at the Basin Reserve, Wellington in December 2003.[8] His career-best figures for an innings were 6 wickets for 11 runs against New Zealand at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, in May 2002.[9] Shoaib took twelve five-wicket hauls in Test cricket and ten or more wickets per match twice in the format.[8][10]
Having made his One Day International (ODI) debut in October 1998 against Zimbabwe at the Harare Sports Club,[11] Shoaib's first five-wicket haul came against New Zealand in 2001, a match Pakistan won at the Eden Park, Auckland.[12] His best bowling performance in ODIs was 6 wickets for 16 runs against New Zealand at the National Stadium, Karachi, in December 2001.[13] Shoaib played 19 Twenty20 Internationals for Pakistan, however he never took a five-wicket haul in this format.[14] He retired from international cricket after the 2011 Cricket World Cup.[15] As of 2014, he is sixth in the list of five-wicket haul takers for Pakistan, all formats of the game combined.[16]
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Date | Day the Test started or ODI held |
| Inn | 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 | Batsmen whose wickets were taken in the five-wicket haul |
| Result | Result for Pakistan in that match |
| * | One of two five-wicket hauls by Shoaib in a match |
| † | 10 wickets or more taken in the match |
| ‡ | Shoaib was selected as man of the match |
Tests
| No. | Date | Ground | Against | Inn | Overs | Runs | Wkts | Econ | Batsmen | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28 February 1998 | Kingsmead Cricket Ground, Durban |  South Africa | 2 | 12 | 43 | 5 | 3.58 | Won[7] | |
| 2 | 5 March 2000 | Arbab Niaz Stadium, Peshawar |  Sri Lanka | 1 | 24.3 | 75 | 5 | 3.06 | Lost[17] | |
| 3 | 31 January 2002 ‡ | Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium, Sharjah (neutral venue) |  West Indies | 4 | 16 | 24 | 5 | 1.50 | Won[18] | |
| 4 | 1 May 2002 | Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore |  New Zealand | 2 | 8.2 | 11 | 6 | 1.32 | Won[19] | |
| 5 | 3 October 2002 | P Saravanamuttu Stadium, Colombo |  Australia | 3 | 8 | 21 | 5 | 2.62 | Lost[20] | |
| 6 | 27 August 2003 † ‡ | Arbab Niaz Stadium, Peshawar |  Bangladesh | 1 | 22.5 | 50 | 6 | 2.18 | Won[10] | |
| 7 | 26 December 2003 * † ‡ | Basin Reserve, Wellington | New Zealand | 1 | 30.3 | 48 | 5 | 2.34 | Won[8] | |
| 8 | 26 December 2003 * † ‡ | Basin Reserve, Wellington | New Zealand | 3 | 18 | 30 | 6 | 1.66 | Won[8] | |
| 9 | 20 October 2004 | Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad | Sri Lanka | 1 | 19 | 60 | 5 | 3.15 | Lost[21] | |
| 10 | 16 December 2004 | WACA Ground, Perth | Australia | 1 | 22 | 99 | 5 | 4.50 | Lost[22] | |
| 11 | 26 December 2004 | Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne | Australia | 2 | 27 | 109 | 5 | 4.03 | Lost[23] | |
| 12 | 29 November 2005 | Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore |  England | 3 | 19 | 71 | 5 | 3.73 | Won[24] |