Dismissing batters on consecutive balls is not an easy task. But a few bowlers have done the unthinkable and dismissed 4 batters on 4 consecutive balls.
When a bowler takes 4 wickets in 4 balls, it’s referred to as a double hat-trick. This is a rare achievement, and only a handful of bowlers have attained it.
Here, we’ll look at the bowlers who took double hat-tricks in international cricket.
1. Lasith Malinga (Sri Lanka) vs South Africa | 2007
Lasith Malinga registered the first-ever double hat-trick in international cricket. The Yorker King attained this rare feat in the ODI World Cup match against South Africa in 2007.
Malinga’s double hat-trick brought drama into the game. South Africa were chasing the target of 210 runs set by Sri Lanka.
They were cruising towards victory comfortably at 206 for 5, but Malinga turned the game on its head.
He clean-bowled Shaun Pollock with a slower ball and got Andrew Hall caught out on the last 2 balls of the 45th over. The pacer returned in the 47th over, dismissing a set Jacques Kallis and Makhaya Ntini on the first 2 balls to make it 4 in 4.
At this point, South Africa needed 3 runs to win, while Sri Lanka just needed a wicket. But the last South African pair prevailed and won the match.
2. Rashid Khan (Afghanistan) vs Ireland | 2019
Rashid Khan became the first bowler to take a double hat-trick in T20I cricket. He took 4 wickets in 4 balls against Ireland in 2019.
Ireland were in pursuit of a 211-run target, and the Afghani spinner broke down their middle order. Rashid drew his first blood by dismissing a set Kevin O’Brien on the last ball of the 16th over.
He opened the 18th over with George Dockrell’s catch out, followed by Shane Getkate’s stumping and Simi Singh’s LBW dismissal. That left Ireland in a lurch at 158 for 7.
Rashid later picked up one more wicket to register the bowling figures of 5 for 27 and helped Afghanistan win the match by 32 runs.
Also Read | What is a Hat Trick in Cricket? – Explained
3. Lasith Malinga (Sri Lanka) vs New Zealand | 2019
Lasith Malinga found himself in the news again for his double hat-trick against New Zealand in a T20I game in 2019. With that, he became only the first bowler to take double hat-tricks in ODIs and T20Is.
Speaking of Malinga’s effort, Sri Lanka were defending a 126-run target and needed early breakthroughs. And that’s what captain Malinga delivered.
The ace pacer chopped down New Zealand’s top order in the third over. On the third delivery, he clean-bowled Colin Munro and got Hamish Rashford out LBW on the fourth ball.
On the next 2 deliveries, Slinga Malinga bowled out Colin de Grandhomme and dismissed Ross Taylor on ducks. The Kiwis faced a major setback, leaving them in tatter on 15 for 4.
New Zealand couldn’t recover from the early jolts and were bundled out for 88 runs.
4. Curtis Campher (Ireland) vs Netherlands | 2021
Ireland’s Curtis Campher wreaked havoc against the Netherlands in the first round of the 2021 T20 World Cup.
After electing to bat first, the Netherlands were on 50 for 2 at the end of 9 overs. Then came Campher, who pushed them back in the contest.
On the second ball of the 10th over, the medium pacer got Colin Ackermann caught behind out. On the next 3 deliveries, Camphor dismissed Ryan ten Doeschate, Scott Edwards, and Roelof van der Merwe on ducks, leaving the Dutch scrambling at 51 for 6.
5. Jason Holder (West Indies) vs England | 2022
In January 2022, Jason Holder became the fifth bowler to grab a double hat-trick in international cricket. His 4 in 4 effort came against England in the 5-match series decider.
England needed 20 runs off the final over, and Holder had the ball in hand. The tall pacer dismissed Chris Jordan on the second ball, followed by Sam Billing’s wicket on the next ball.
Holder’s next 2 wickets of Adil Rashid and Saqib Mahmood wrapped up England’s innings on 162 runs. As a result, the West Indies won the game and the series.
Leave a Reply