In cricket, a five-wicket haul (also known as a "five–for" or "fifer")^[1][2] refers to a bowler taking five or more wickets in a single innings. A five-wicket haul on debut is regarded by the critics as a notable achievement.^[3][4] As of February 2024, 171 cricketers have taken a five-wicket haul on Test match debut,^[5] out of which twenty-five were from the South Africa national cricket team.^[6] The five-wicket hauls have come against six different opponents, and the South Africans have performed this feat fifteen times against England.^[7] Of the twenty-two matches where a South African debutant has taken a five-wicket haul, twelve have ended in defeat, six in victory and the other four in a draw. The five-wicket hauls were taken at eleven different venues, six of them being taken at the Newlands Cricket Ground, Cape Town.^[8]

Albert Rose-Innes was the first South African to take a five-wicket haul on Test cricket debut. He took 5 wickets for 43 runs against England in 1889.^{[lower-alpha 1]} In the second Test of the series, Gobo Ashley took 7 wickets for 95 runs, in what turned out to be his only appearance in Test cricket.^[10] When the country was re-admitted to play competitive cricket in 1991, Lance Klusener became the first debutant to take a five-wicket haul.^{[lower-alpha 2]} His 8 wickets for 64 runs against India in November 1996 remain the best bowling figures in an innings by a South African on debut.^{[lower-alpha 3]} Sydney Burke and Alf Hall are the only South African debutants to collect 10 or more wickets in a match as of February 2015.^{[lower-alpha 4][14]} Klusener's figures, along with George Bissett's 5 for 37 runs, were included among the "Top 100 Bowling performances of all time" by the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack in 2002.^[15] Neil Brand is the latest cricketer to achieve this feat; he took 6/119 against New Zealand in February 2024.^[16]