Salman Agha takes four wickets in just 22 balls against SA but narrowly misses out on maiden ODI five-for with two overs to spare

Pakistan's off-break bowler Salman Agha produced a mesmerizing spell to dismantle South Africa's batting line-up, taking four crucial wickets in just 3.2 overs in the thrilling first ODI at Boland Park, Paarl. Agha's brilliant performance made him stand out as the top bowler for Pakistan, as he struck at regular intervals to tilt the match in favor of the visitors.

Batting first, South Africa were off to a solid start, with Tony de Zorzi (33) and Ryan Rickelton (36) sharing a 70-run stand for the opening wicket. In desperate search of a wicket, skipper Mohammad Rizwan introduced spinner Agha early into the attack inside the powerplay. Agha got hit for a hat-trick of boundaries in his second over, but he bounced back in style with the wicket of de Zorzi on the fourth ball of the over to break the opening stand. The wickets kept coming for him after that as he dismissed Rickelton in his third over, while Rassie van der Dussen (8) and Tristian Stubbs (1) became his next two victims.

However, despite having two overs left in his quota, he failed to complete his maiden ODI five-wicket haul. Rizwan didn't bring him back to attack after the 22nd over, and Afgha finished his spell with four for 32 in eight overs.

Wicketkeeper batter Heinrich Klaasen rescued the Proteas from a tricky position and helped them post a challenging total of 239/9 in 50 overs. Klaasen missed out on his century but played a valuable 86-run knock off 97 balls. Apart from Afgha, spinner Abrar Ahmed also claimed a couple of wickets, while Shaheen Shah Afridi and Saim Ayub settled for one each.

Earlier, at the toss, Mohammad Rizwan hinted that 70 per cent of the squad would be retained for the next year's Champions Trophy, which makes this series crucial for Pakistan.

“We wanted to bat first as well. Yes we are hosting the Champions Trophy but the conditions will be different but the squad will remain 70% the same. The guys are looking forward to the series. We have three seamers and one spinner,” Rizwan said at the toss.