The Cricket Hat-Trick: Rule, Famous Examples Across Tests, ODIs, and T20s, and Why It's So Rare
A hat-trick in cricket is when a bowler takes three wickets on three consecutive deliveries — they may span two overs or two innings in Tests. The term originated when a hat was awarded to the first bowler to achieve the feat in the 19th century. Famous hat-tricks: Peter Siddle (Australia, 2010 Ashes, first ball of his birthday), Stuart Broad (2011 WC), Wasim Akram (WC 1999), Jasprit Bumrah (2019 Test vs West Indies). The hat-trick is cricket's rarest and most celebrated individual bowling achievement.
A hat-trick in cricket occurs when a bowler dismisses three batters on three consecutive deliveries — the deliveries may span different overs, and in Test cricket, may span different innings (though this is extremely rare). The dismissals can be any combination of dismissed types: caught, bowled, LBW, stumped. The term 'hat-trick' originated in the 1850s when HH Stephenson took three wickets with consecutive deliveries and received a hat as a prize — the practice of awarding a hat gave the feat its name.
The Rule in Detail
The last ball of over N and the first two balls of over N+1 count as consecutive. In Tests, if a bowler takes wickets with the last two balls of an innings and the first ball of the following innings, it counts as a hat-trick. This makes Tests uniquely possible for cross-innings hat-tricks. In T20s, if two wickets come in one over and the following over starts with a wicket by the same bowler, it counts — even if another bowler bowled the intervening over. Hat-tricks are rare: approximately 1 per 100 Test matches, more in T20s (more aggression, more dismissals).
Famous Hat-Tricks
- Peter Siddle, 2010 Ashes (Brisbane): first ball of his birthday, took the hat-trick in the opening Test — 3 wickets in 3 balls dismissing Cook (lbw), Prior (lbw), Broad (lbw). Australia won the first Test and the Ashes.
- Wasim Akram, 1999 World Cup vs South Africa: Akram took a hat-trick in ODI cricket during the Super Six stage — remarkable at that level of tournament pressure.
- Stuart Broad, 2011 World Cup: took a hat-trick in ODI cricket during the 2011 ICC World Cup against India — a rare World Cup hat-trick.
- Jasprit Bumrah, 2019 Test vs West Indies (North Sound): Bumrah's Test hat-trick included Darren Bravo (caught), Shimron Hetmyer (caught), and Jason Holder (caught) — India's fastest bowler achieving cricket's rarest feat.
- Trent Boult, 2019 World Cup final (England): Boult took 2 wickets with consecutive deliveries and was denied a hat-trick only because a catch on the boundary was grounded over the rope — the third ball dismissed the batter but not via a legal hat-trick ball.
Frequently asked questions
Which bowlers have taken the most hat-tricks in international cricket, and what is the record for hat-tricks in a single format?
Hat-trick records in international cricket. Hat-tricks are rare enough that only a handful of bowlers have taken multiple in international cricket. Multiple international hat-tricks: Wasim Akram: 2 Test hat-tricks and 1 ODI hat-trick — 3 international hat-tricks total. He achieved a hat-trick in the 1999 World Cup (vs South Africa) and remains one of the few bowlers with multiple international hat-trick achievements. Tim Southee: 2 ODI hat-tricks. Lasith Malinga: 4 ODI hat-tricks — the most in ODI history. Malinga is unique in taking 4 wickets in 4 consecutive deliveries twice in international cricket — in the 2007 World Cup vs South Africa (4 wickets in 4 balls) and in an Asia Cup match — making him the only bowler to achieve 4-in-4 in international cricket. His hat-trick record (4 in ODIs) is a record that may never be equalled. World Cup hat-tricks: only a handful of hat-tricks have occurred in World Cup cricket. Wasim Akram (1999), Stuart Broad (2011 WC final preparations), Brett Lee (2003 WC). Test hat-tricks by nation: England has the most Test hat-trick instances; Australia second. The record for most wickets taken via hat-trick in a career (as individual hat-trick component dismissals, rather than number of hat-tricks) belongs to Wasim Akram. First Test hat-trick: The first recorded Test hat-trick was taken by Frederick Spofforth (Australia) against England in 1879 — in cricket's third ever Test match. The Hat-Trick Ball: many counties and Test match grounds preserve the ball used in famous hat-tricks. The Lord's Long Room contains the ball Peter Siddle's used for his 2010 Ashes hat-trick.