In October 2004, he took ten wickets against Sri Lanka at the National Stadium, Karachi, with a second-innings haul of seven wickets for 118, setting up Pakistan's six-wicket win. He took ten wickets in the mach conceding 190 runs. Kaneria bowled 60 overs in that innings which caused his finger bleeding. His performance won him the man of the match award. In January 2005, Kaneria took eight wickets in a math against Australia conceding 204 runs including seven wickets for 188 runs in the first Australian innings. Despite Pakistan lost the match at the Sydney Cricket Ground, he achieved his third seven-wicket haul in Test cricket, and Australian cricketer Shane Warne praised his performance. During the innings, he reached his hundredth Test wicket. Kaneria was initially nominated for the ICC Test Player of the Year by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 2005 for his performance during the previous year. Kaneria was once described by the BBC as a "match-winner with his leg-breaks".