Left-arm pacer Jaydev Unadkat kicked off 2023 with a bang, becoming the very first player to scalp a hat-trick in the first over of a Ranji Trophy match. He achieved this incredible feat during the contest between Delhi and Saurashtra in Rajkot.
The Saurashtra captain sent Dhruv Shorey, Vaibhav Rawal and Yash Dhull back to the pavilion in the first over itself. He then completed his five-wicket haul by the end of his second over, with staggering figures of 2-0-5-5.
Dhruv Shorey, who is the current leading run-scorer in the Ranji Trophy with an average of 144.5, was clean bowled on just his fourth delivery.
Having beaten Mumbai for the first time in Ranji Trophy, Saurashtra are currently placed third in the points table, with high chances of making the playoffs.
The hat-trick comes a little more than a month after Unadkat lead Saurashtra to the Vijay Hazare Trophy triumph, beating Tamil Nadu in the final.
Purple Patch Continues for Jaydev Unadkat
Unadkat is enjoying one of his best moments as a cricketer, as he also made a memorable return to the Indian test squad after 12 long years, having been selected for the test series against Bangladesh in December.
The 31-year-old played inthe second test match against Bangladesh at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium, picking up his first ever wicket in Test cricket. He ended the match with three wickets in total, proving himself as a solid option for selectors in test cricket.
The pacer was also picked up by the Lucknow Super Giants ten days ago in the IPL Auction 2023.
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