[Watch] When Irfan Pathan took a first-over hat-trick vs Pakistan in 2006 Karachi Test
Former Indian left-arm pacer Irfan Pathan etched his name in the cricket record books by becoming the first bowler to claim a hat-trick in the opening over of a Test match in January 2006. The 38-year-old achieved this incredible feat against arch-rivals Pakistan in the final Test of the 3-match series in Karachi.
The first two Tests of the marquee series ended in dull draws, with both teams piling on mammoth totals on absolute featherbeds at Lahore and Faisalabad. In complete contrast to the first two pitches, the surface at Karachi had an English look to it with plenty of grass covering.
Indian skipper Rahul Dravid won a vital toss and had no hesitation in fielding first. Chomping at the bit of bowling on the Karachi track, Pathan wasted no time making an immediate impact.
The talented swing bowler dismissed opener Salman Butt, caught at first slip off the fourth ball of the over. He subsequently trapped the opposition skipper, Younis Khan, in front with a sensational delivery that swung back in before completing the hat-trick with another peach to clean up veteran batter Mohammad Yousuf.
The all-rounder also became the second Indian bowler after Harbhajan Singh to claim a Test hattrick.
Here is a video of Irfan Pathan's breathtaking hat-trick:
Despite Pathan's heroics that had the hosts reeling at 39-6 in their first innings, Kamran Akmal's counterattacking century with valuable contributions from Abdul Razzaq and Shoaib Akhtar took Pakistan to a competitive total of 245.
In response, India struggled to deal with the swing bowling artistry of Mohammad Asif and Abdul Razzaq and were shot out for a meager 238 in their first essay. With the pitch easing out considerably, the home team piled on a mammoth 599/7 in their second innings, much to the dismay of the Indians.
The visitors could not handle the red-hot Pakistan pace attack and were bundled out for 265 in the final innings, despite a stylish century by Yuvraj Singh. However, despite Pakistan winning the Test match and the series 1-0, the game is fondly remembered among Indian fans for Irfan Pathan's first-over magic.
A look at Irfan Pathan's international career
Representing his hometown of Baroda in first-class cricket, Irfan Pathan began his International career as a prodigious swing bowler, drawing comparisons with the great Wasim Akram.
The left-arm pacer debuted for India in the Test and ODI formats during the famous 2003–04 tour of Australia. However, the talented all-rounder came into his own on the tour of Pakistan in 2004, picking up 12 wickets in three Tests and eight scalps in as many ODIs.
He was crucial to the Men in Blue emerging victorious in both series and was named the ICC Men's Emerging Player of the Year for 2004. However, since becoming the Indian coach in 2005, former Australian great Greg Chappell identified Pathan's batting prowess and turned him into more of a batting all-rounder.
While the change saw Pathan's batting numbers improve drastically, with ten half-centuries and a century between 2005 and 2007, the southpaw's bowling numbers dwindled.
After averaging in the mid-20s with the ball across formats in 2004 and 2005, Pathan averaged 34 in 2006 and 2007. Nevertheless, the talented all-rounder finished his career with 301 International wickets, including 100 Test scalps and 173 ODI wickets.
Irfan Pathan also played a vital role in India's T20 World Cup title run in 2007, finishing with ten wickets in seven matches, including being adjudged Player of the Match in the final against Pakistan for his figures of 3/16 in four overs.