ICC World Cup 2019: 5 players who could take a hat-trick
The first ODI hat-trick in the history of the game was bagged by Pakistani quick Jalal-ud-Din in September 1982 against Australia at Hyderabad. In total, there have been only 44 hat-tricks in more than 3,800 matches, which itself speaks of the rarity of this.
It goes without saying that in cricket, hat-tricks are quite hard to come by and are one of the proudest achievements in the career of a bowler.
Presently, the player with the most number of hat-tricks in ODI is the Sri Lankan great, Lasith Malinga, who has taken three ODI hat-tricks in his entire career.
In World Cup history, there have been a total of 9 hat-tricks with the first one coming at the hands of Indian paceman, Chetan Sharma, in 1987 against New Zealand.
In the upcoming World Cup, this tally is expected to gain a significant rise owing to the pitches in England and Wales, the host nations, which are swing-promoting and fickle, compelling the batsmen to be on their guard.
On that note, let us take a look at 5 players who possess the potential to secure a hat-trick in the forthcoming 2019 Cricket World Cup.
#5 Jasprit Bumrah
Jasprit Bumrah has risen to fame of late having made his debut for the Indian Cricket Team on 23 January 2016 against Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Over the course of the next two years, he has become an indispensable asset for the Indian team by virtue of his consistent performances in the limited overs cricket.
According to the latest ICC rankings, Bumrah tops the list of the ODI bowlers with a career-best rating of 787, which is quite impressive for a player who burst into the international scene only a couple of years ago.
The Mumbai Indians' paceman has only been exposed to the English conditions once in ICC Champions Trophy 2017 when he became the 2nd highest Indian wicket-taker after Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
The extra pace and bounce generally on offer in English conditions will be of immense help for the bowler, who will patently be a force to be reckoned with in the World Cup.