Hat-tricks in World Cup – Top 5 ODI WC Hat Tricks Revisited

Hat-tricks in World Cup are no mean feat. Whoever has achieved this feat has seen his stature and legend grow over a period of time.

Let’s see all the hat tricks in cricket world cup, revisiting them and going deep for the Top 5 instances. 

We also have two Indian hat-tricks in the history of the ODI World Cup. But who had taken them, and when did that happen?

Hat-tricks in World Cup ODI Cricket History

Before we get to see the hat-tricks in World Cup, let’s look at what a hat-trick means and why it is difficult. 

• When a bowler picks up three wickets on three successive balls, that’s when it’s called a hattrick.
• To get a wicket once is a celebration, twice is a miracle, but thrice is an epic. 

So by now, you must have gotten the idea that taking a hat-trick is very difficult, and therefore, picking hat-tricks in World Cup is even more difficult.

Even then, there are some bowlers who have improvised and gone on to pick hat-tricks in World Cup.

Before we get the top 5 hat-trick wicket-takers, let’s look at the full list of hat-tricks in World Cup:

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Top 5 Hat-trick Wicket Takers in ODI Cricket World Cup

 Here are the five hat-tricks in the World Cup, which we will take a closer look at.

1. Mohammed Shami vs. Afghanistan
2. Chetan Sharma vs. New Zealand
3. Brett Lee vs. Kenya
4. Chaminda Vas vs. Bangladesh
5. Lasith Malinga vs. South Africa

Mohammed Shami vs Afghanistan (ODI World Cup 2019): 

Mohammed Shami is the latest Indian to pick up a hat-trick in an ODI World Cup.

• His superlative performance came against Afghanistan during the 2019 ODI World Cup, where he registered figures of 4/40.
• India had batted first and were restricted to 224/8. 
• In reply, Shami kept up the pressure and would go on to pick a hat-trick, which meant Afghanistan would be all out for 213.

Chetan Sharma vs New Zealand (ODI World Cup 1987):

It was just another ODI World Cup match that was being played in Nagpur. 

• New Zealand had batted first and were restricted to 221/9 thanks to this hattrick from Sharma.
• In reply, India would chase down that total with nine wickets to spare.
• Thanks to this performance, Sharma became only the second Indian to score a hat-trick in the World Cup.

Brett Lee vs Kenya (2003 ODI World Cup):

Brett Lee’s superb show is the third such performance in our list of hat-tricks in World Cup.

Kenya had done really well that year to qualify for the Super Six, where they were now up against Australia, who themselves were on the rampage.

• Kenya had batted first and would soon face the wrath of Lee, who would pick figures of 3 for 14.
• In fact, he would pick the wickets of Kennedy Ottieno, Brijal Patel, and David Obuya in the last three balls of his second over, reducing Kenya to 3/3.
• They were restricted to 174/8 and would lose the match by five wickets.

Chaminda Vas vs Bangladesh (ODI World Cup 2003):

Sri Lanka’s Chaminda Vaas is the fourth performer on our list of the top five hat tricks.

Bangladesh had batted first, and Vaas was in charge right from the start.

• Bowling the first over himself, Vaas would reduce the opposition to 0/3 in the first three balls of the inning.
• Bangladesh would eventually be all out for 124, and Sri Lanka would win the match by ten wickets.
• Vaas would go on to win Man of the Match with his incredible performance of 6/25.

Lasith Malinga vs Sri Lanka (ODI World Cup 2007):

Vaas’ counterpart, Lasith Malinga, picked not one but two hat tricks in the World Cup. But we will discuss this hat-trick, which he took against South Africa in the 2007 ODI World Cup match.

• Sri Lanka had batted first and were all out for 209 in Guyana.
• In reply, South Africa were going great guns and were 181/4, chasing 210. But a youngster named Malinga would go on to change the course of the match.
• Had Sri Lanka posted ten runs more, they would have surely won that match!
• Nevertheless, he would go on to pick the wickets of Shaun Pollock, Andrew Hall, Jacques Kallis, and Makhaya Ntini in four successive balls, completing his hattrick in the process.

South Africa would win the match by 1 wicket, and Malinga would register figures of 4/54.

Final Thoughts On Hat-Tricks In World Cup 

These hat-tricks in World Cup changed the public’s perception that cricket is a batter’s game.

Bowlers now had the room to improvise and were becoming more street-smart.

For instance, the likes of Lasith Malinga had an unorthodox action and would pick wickets with variations of pace. These performances came under pressure and once again proved the fact that you can’t win a match without your bowlers.

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FAQ Regarding Hat-Tricks in World Cup