Pakistan’s Spin-Pace Duo Seal Commanding Win Over South Africa

The moment the last wicket fell, fans stood up, cheering and waving Pakistani flags as Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium echoed with joy. Pakistan had done it. They clinched the Pak vs SA Test 1 by 93 runs, taking a 1–0 series lead that few predicted after a rocky start.

The match had twists. Plenty of them. Noman Ali delivered when it mattered most, grabbing 10 wickets across both innings. The left-arm spinner never looked hurried. He was calm, methodical, and almost old-school in rhythm. 

Shaheen Strikes, South Africa Stumble

And then there was Shaheen Afridi. Fierce with the new ball, unrelenting with the old. His 4/33 in the 2nd innings jolted South Africa’s chase apart. Every delivery felt like an event. One ripped through Dewald Brevis’s defense, and the silence that followed said it all. Suddenly, the visitors were on the ropes.

Afridi’s celebration said as much as the scoreboard. Arms wide, eyes to the sky relief, pride, and belief. Pakistan’s bowlers hunted as a pack, while fielders fed off the energy. 

Pakistani batters did not perform exceptionally well. But their innings were effective. Imam-ul-Haq and Salman Ali Agha each scored 93 runs in the first innings. They laid a decent foundation for the second innings. When wickets tumbled in the 2nd innings, their earlier work proved priceless.

The surface demanded grit. Every run felt earned. But Pakistan knew one thing. They had spinners for the wickets.

Noman Ali’s Spell That Broke Them

In the fourth innings, as South Africa pushed for an unlikely chase of 277, Noman Ali struck again and again. He looped, drifted, and deceived. The crowd gasped with each turn. His dismissal of Brevis changed the game. That was the moment.

And then came Shaheen Afridi, he cleaned up the tail, and it was over. Pakistan won the 1st test against South Africa. A 93-run victory, and with it, a sense that something’s building again in red-ball cricket here.

In the Pak vs SA 1st Test, Pakistan didn’t just win a match. They reclaimed belief. Now the talk turned to what’s next. Can Pakistan seal the series in the second Test? Hard to say, but this win sets the momentum for team Pakistan.