It seems August 29 was the day of hat-tricks. First, Jammu and Kashmir’s Auqib Nabi created history, becoming the first player ever to take a double hat-trick (4 wickets in 4 balls) in the Duleep Trophy. By the end of the day, Sri Lanka’s Dilshan Madushanka etched his name into the record books in Harare with a sensational last-over hat-trick against Zimbabwe, sealing a dramatic seven-run win for his side in the opening ODI.
Madushanka saves Sri Lanka
With Zimbabwe needing just 10 runs in the final over, Madushanka knocked over Sikandar Raza, Brad Evans and Richard Ngarava off consecutive deliveries, silencing the home crowd and saving Sri Lanka from embarrassment before the Asia Cup. At one point, it was Zimbabwe who were running with the game. However, Raza’s dismissal for 92 was the turning point, and Madushanka followed it up by holding his nerve to finish with 4 for 62.
The 23-year-old has now become only the seventh bowler in men’s ODI history to claim multiple hat-tricks and the third Sri Lankan, after Chaminda Vaas and Lasith Malinga, to achieve the feat. His first hat-trick had come against Bangladesh back in 2018.
Bowlers with more than one ODI hat-trick
| Player | Hat-tricks | Team |
|---|---|---|
| Lasith Malinga | 3 | Sri Lanka |
| Wasim Akram | 2 | Pakistan |
| Chaminda Vaas | 2 | Sri Lanka |
| Kuldeep Yadav | 2 | India |
| Trent Boult | 2 | New Zealand |
| Saqlain Mushtaq | 2 | Pakistan |
| Dilshan Madushanka | 2 | Sri Lanka |
Malinga leads the list with three ODI hat-tricks, including his unforgettable four-in-four against South Africa in 2007. Vaas, meanwhile, was the first to grab two hat-tricks, his most famous being the three wickets with the first three balls of a World Cup match in 2003. The only Indian on the list is Kuldeep Yadav, who managed the rare feat quite early on in his career.
Madushanka’s effort ensures Sri Lanka stays ahead in the two-match series while also continuing the island nation’s proud tradition of producing hat-trick heroes in limited-overs cricket. In fact, no other country has taken more hat-tricks than Sri Lanka’s 11 in ODIs. Pakistan comes second with eight, followed by Australia (6), India (5) and Bangladesh (5).
List of hat-tricks taken by a Sri Lankan player
- 1) Chaminda Vaas – vs Zimbabwe (2001); vs Bangladesh (2003)
- 2) Lasith Malinga – vs South Africa (2007); vs Kenya (2011); vs Australia (2011)
- 3) Farveez Maharoof – vs India (2010)
- 4) Thisara Perera – vs Pakistan (2012)
- 5) Wanindu Hasaranga – vs Zimbabwe (2017)
- 6) Shehan Madushanka – vs Bangladesh (2018)
- 7) Maheesh Theekshana – vs New Zealand (2025)
- 8) Dilshan Madushanka – vs Zimbabwe (2025)
