Sri Lankan spinner Maheesh Theekshana made history with a stunning hat-trick during the second ODI against New Zealand at Seddon Park on Wednesday.
Theekshana’s hat-trick came in a rain-affected 37-over match, where he claimed three wickets across two overs. In the 35th over, he dismissed New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner and Nathan Smith on back-to-back deliveries, before removing Matt Henry with the first ball of the 37th over.
Theekshana finished with impressive figures of 4 for 44 in his eight overs, marking a remarkable comeback after a tough T20I series where he only managed two wickets. His performance was even more notable after he had been dropped from the playing XI for the first ODI.
With this achievement, Theekshana became the seventh Sri Lankan bowler to take an ODI hat-trick, joining cricketing legends like Chaminda Vaas and Lasith Malinga. Vaas achieved this feat twice, while Malinga holds the record for three ODI hat-tricks.
Despite Theekshana’s heroics, New Zealand posted a challenging total of 255/9 in their 37 overs. Rachin Ravindra played a key role with 79 off 63 balls, while Mark Chapman contributed 62 off 52 balls.
Sri Lanka now faces the task of chasing this competitive total, setting the stage for an exciting finish.
