New Delhi. Although the Irish team has never made it past the second round in the T20 World Cup, it has a feat to its name that even seasoned teams lack. The Irish team has been a part of this major tournament since 2009 and will be participating in the T20 World Cup for the 8th time in 2024. Ireland cricket team has been placed in Group ‘A’ along with India, Pakistan, Canada and USA. India will start their campaign with a match against Ireland (India Vs Ireland) on 5th June. Coming to the T20 World Cup, the Irish team has so far won 7 of their 25 matches while losing 15. The team’s three matches have been inconclusive.
As a team, Ireland may not have lived up to expectations, but their individual performances have the achievement of being the only team in ICC history to have won two bowler tournaments in the T20 World Cup. No team participating in an ICC tournament, including other Test playing nations, has achieved this feat. Not only this, so far no bowler from teams like India, Pakistan, West Indies, New Zealand, Bangladesh and Afghanistan has been able to take a hat-trick in this important tournament.
Ireland’s Kemper and Little have already taken hat-tricks
So far 6 bowlers have achieved the feat of taking a hat-trick in the T20 World Cup. This includes Australia’s Brett Lee, Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasranga, South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada, besides Karthik Meiyappan of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Ireland’s Curtis Kempfer and Josh Little. Kaempfer took 4 wickets in four consecutive balls during the hat-trick. He took the hat-trick against Netherlands in the 2021 World Cup, while Little, who played for Gujarat Titans in IPL 2023 and 2024, achieved the feat against New Zealand in 2022.
Brett Lee is the first bowler to take a hat-trick in T20 World Cup.
Australia’s Brett Lee has taken the first hat-trick of the T20 World Cup. He took wickets in three consecutive balls against Bangladesh in the first tournament of 2007. In the Cape Town match on 16 September, he dismissed Shakib Al Hasan, Mashrafe Mortaza and Alok Kapali in consecutive balls in the 16th over of Bangladesh’s innings. Lee took three wickets for 27 runs in the match and was named ‘Player of the Match’ in Australia’s 9-wicket win.
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Kaempfer took 4 consecutive wickets against Netherlands
After Brett Lee’s feat, no bowler could take a hat-trick in the next 5 T20 World Cups. Irish fast bowler Curtis Kaempfer broke this streak with a bang in 2021. In a match played in Abu Dhabi on 18 October 2021, during the Netherlands’ innings, he dismissed Colin Ackerman, Ryan ten Douchet, Scott Edwards and Rolof van der Merwe in four consecutive balls in the 10th over. Kaempfer took 4 wickets for 26 runs in the match. The Irish team won the match by 7 wickets and Kemper became the ‘Player of the Match’.
Hasaranga also took a hat-trick but the Sri Lankan team lost.
11 days after Ireland’s Kemper took a hat-trick in the T20 World Cup 2021, Sri Lanka’s wrist-spinner Wanindu Hasranga also took a hat-trick. He achieved this feat against South Africa in Sharjah on 30 October. His hat-trick was completed in two overs. It is a different thing that despite this hat-trick of Hasaranga, Sri Lanka had to face defeat in this match. In reply to Sri Lanka’s 142, Hasaranga dismissed Aden Markram on the last ball of the 15th over of South Africa’s innings. The wickets of Temba Bavuma and Dwayne Pretorius were then taken in the first two balls of the 18th over of the innings. He took 3 wickets for 20 runs in the match. However, South Africa managed to chase down the target of 143 runs for the loss of 6 wickets and Chinaman bowler Tabraiz Shamsi (3/17 and two catches) was the player of the match.
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Rabada’s hat-trick sealed the win for South Africa.
After Kaempfer and Hasaranga, South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada became the third bowler to take a hat-trick in the T20 World Cup 2021. He achieved this feat against England in Sharjah on 6 November. During England’s batting, he dismissed Chris Woakes, Eoin Morgan and Chris Jordan off the first three balls in the last over of the innings to ensure South Africa’s 10-run victory in the match. Batting first, South Africa scored 189 runs with the help of ‘Player of the Match’ Rasi van der Dusen’s unbeaten 94, but the England team could only score 179 runs thanks to Rabada’s ‘hattrick’ (3/48). .
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Meiyappan was born in Chennai but took a hat-trick for the UAE.
In the T20 World Cup 2022, Karthik Meiyappan of UAE registered his name in this special club by taking a hat-trick. Chennai-born Mayyappan took the hat-trick against Sri Lanka playing for the UAE on 18 October, in a match played in Geelong, Australia.Mayyappan hit Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Charith Aslanka on the fourth, fifth and sixth balls of the 15th over of Sri. Lankan innings and captain Dasun Shanaka was out. Despite this performance from leg break bowler Meiyappan (3/19) UAE lost the match by 79 runs. Sri Lankan batsman Nishank who played an innings of 74 runs was the ‘player of the match’.
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Ireland’s Josh Little took a hat-trick in the T20 World Cup 2022 itself. With this, Little has become the second bowler from Ireland to take a hat-trick in the T20 World Cup. He took the wickets of Kane Williamson, James Neesham and Mitchell Santner in consecutive deliveries against New Zealand on 4 November. He took these wickets on the second, third and fourth balls of the 19th over of the innings. Despite this performance from left-arm fast bowler Little (3/22), New Zealand managed to win the match by 35 runs and Kiwi captain Williamson was the man of the match with 61 runs.
Interestingly, these four hat-trick bowlers – Ireland’s Curtis Kempfer and Josh Little, Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga and South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada – will also be seen playing in the T20 World Cup 2024. Lee is one of six hat-trick bowlers to retire as the UAE team fails to qualify this time around.
Tags: Curtis Kaempfer, India vs Ireland, Ireland Cricket, T20 World Cup
First published: May 31, 2024, 07:31 IST