Saurashtra skipper Jaydev Unadkat got 2023 off to a flying start on Tuesday, becoming the first bowler to win a Ranji Trophy hat-trick in the first over. As if that wasn’t enough, the experienced fast bowler bowled a fifer in the competition in only 12 balls with a remarkable spell of 2-0-5-5.
Unadkat claimed his hat-trick after dismissing Delhi’s Dhruv Shorey, Vaibhav Rawal, and Yash Dhull in the third, fourth, and fifth deliveries of the match. Vinay Kumar previously held the record for the quickest hat-trick, which happened in the first and third overs of the 2017-18 quarter-final against Mumbai.
The Saurashtra captain’s fantasy run continues, as he recently made headlines with a remarkable Test return, picking up three wickets over two innings against Bangladesh at Mirpur.
In addition, he was the main wicket-taker for Saurashtra during their Vijay Hazare Trophy-winning campaign, taking 19 wickets in 10 matches at an economy rate of 3.33. Unadkat batted first and concluded with statistics of 8/39 after completing 12 overs.
Unadkat’s scorching spell has thoroughly perplexed Delhi, who have been limited to 133 on Day 1 of the match at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium C.
Delhi chose to bat first and is on the verge of losing to Saurashtra. The encounter is crucial for Saurashtra if they are to advance to the competition’s knockout stages.
After three games, the Unadkat-led team is now third in Group B with 12 points, including one victory and two draws. Mumbai and Maharashtra presently sit atop the leaderboard, in first and second position, respectively.
Meanwhile, after losing their leading run-scorer, Dhruv Shorey, who had 579 runs in seven innings, the team will rely on their lower-order bats to put up a decent total. In any scenario, both parties will want favourable outcomes.
