It was going nicely in Sri Lanka. Pathum Nissanka and Bhanuka Rajapaksa played admirably as they reached 117 for 2 in the 15th over. In his third over, 22-year-old legspinner Karthik Meiyappan, who is playing in only his 13th T20I, shocked everyone.
They did indeed score a hat-trick when Rajapaksa, Charith Asalanka, and Dasun Shanaka vanished in an instant. Andrew Miller noted that it was only the sixth hat trick in a men’s T20 World Cup game. This article will tell you exactly what happened in those three balls.
Karthik Meiyappan to Rajapaksa (14.4 Over)
The first target for Karthik was Rajapaksa. Rajapaksa simply opened the angles outside off to heave it into the off side but scuffed the stroke directly down Kashif’s throat and he was dismissed.
Karthik Meiyappan to Asalanka (14.5 Over)
The second wicket was of Asalanka. Asalanka tried to nibble the edge and got a first-baller. It was goofy with extra bounce, outside of the mark but drawn in by the angle over the left-hander, and Karthik Meiyappan now had the chance of a hat trick.
Karthik Meiyappan to Shanaka (14.6 Over)
Karthik tnters the gate clean! It was a beautiful way to complete the over. The skipper of Sri Lanka leaned forward to catch the googly, which was precisely flighted and bitingly bounced past the inside edge to smack the top of the timbers. It was a thrilling World Cup moment.
Karthik Meiyappan is now on the list of hat-tricks in men’s T20Is.
List of hat-tricks in men’s T20Is
| Player | Match | Season | Wickets of Players |
| B Lee | Australia v Bangladesh | 2007/08 | Shakib Al Hasan, Mashrafe Mortaza, Alok Kapali |
| JDP Oram | New Zealand v Sri Lanka | 2009 | AD Mathews, CM Bandara, KMDN Kulasekara |
| TG Southee | New Zealand v Pakistan | 2010/11 | Younis Khan, Mohammad Hafeez, Umar Akmal |
| NLTC Perera | Sri Lanka v India | 2015/16 | HH Pandya, SK Raina, Yuvraj Singh |
| SL Malinga | Sri Lanka v Bangladesh | 2016/17 | Mushfiqur Rahim, Mashrafe Mortaza |
| Faheem Ashraf | Pakistan v Sri Lanka | 2017/18 | I Udana, ML Udawatte, MD Shanaka |
| Rashid Khan | Afghanistan v Ireland | 2018/19 | KJ O’Brien, GH Dockrell, SC Getkate, Simi Singh |
| SL Malinga | Sri Lanka v New Zealand | 2019 | C Munro, HD Rutherford, C de Grandhomme |
| Mohammad Hasnain | Pakistan v Sri Lanka | 2019/20 | PBB Rajapaksa, MD Shanaka, GSNFG Jayasuriya |
| Khawar Ali | Oman v Netherlands | 2019/20 | AJ Staal, CN Ackermann, RE van der Merwe |
| N Vanua | Papua New Guinea v Bermuda | 2019/20 | DC Stovell, KS Leverock, DAP Darrell |
| DL Chahar | India v Bangladesh | 2019/20 | Shafiul Islam, Mustafizur Rahman, Aminul Islam |
| AC Agar | Australia v South Africa | 2019/20 | F du Plessis, AL Phehlukwayo, DW Steyn |
| A Dananjaya | Sri Lanka v West Indies | 2020/21 | E Lewis, CH Gayle, N Pooran |
| Waseem Abbas | Malta v Belgium | 2021 | Ashiqullah Said, Khalid Ahmadi, NSK Mehta |
| Sheraz Sheikh | Belgium v Malta | 2021 | Amar Sharma, N Khanna, VP Thamotharam |
| NT Ellis | Australia v Bangladesh | 2021 | Mahmudullah, Mustafizur Rahman, Mahedi Hasan |
| E Otieno | Kenya v Uganda | 2021 | D Muhumuza, K Waiswa, Bilal Hassan |
| KS Bagabena | Ghana v Seychelles | 2021/22 | SKDT Madusanka, Mazharul Islam, S Udhayan |
| C Campher | Ireland v Netherlands | 2021/22 | CN Ackermann, RN ten Doeschate, SA Edwards |
| DA Blignaut | Germany v Italy | 2021/22 | Jaspreet Singh, BBJL Perera, Baljit Singh |
| DM Nakrani | Uganda v Seychelles | 2021/22 | P Byron, VL Mukesh, SR Rocket |
| P Aho | Nigeria v Sierra Leone | 2021/22 | AB Kamara, M Kpaka, E Ernest |
| PWH de Silva | Sri Lanka v South Africa | 2021/22 | AK Markram, T Bavuma, D Pretorius |
| K Rabada | South Africa v England | 2021/22 | CR Woakes, EJG Morgan, CJ Jordan |
| H Fennell | Argentina v Panama | 2021/22 | Mahmud Jasat, A Natubhai Ahir, D Ahir |
| JO Holder | West Indies v England | 2021/22 | CJ Jordan, SW Billings, AU Rashid, S Mahmood |
| Karan KC | Nepal v Papua New Guinea | 2021/22 | CA Soper, SK Atai, N Pokana |
| JJ Smit | Namibia v Uganda | 2022 | S Ssesazi, F Nsubuga, J Miyagi |
| Khalid Ahmadi | Belgium v Malta | 2022 | Imran Ameer, Aaftab Alam Khan, VP Thamotharam |
| Syazrul Idrus | Malaysia v Thailand | 2022 | S Desungnoen, J Pakhiaokajee, C Chatphaisan |
| K Senamontree | Thailand v Malaysia | 2022 | Ibrahim Hassan, Ibrahim Rizan, L Shafeeg |
| LV Van Beek | Netherlands v Hong Kong | 2022 | Nizakat Khan, SS McKechnie, Ehsan Khan |
| CPPM Sadun | Cyprus v Turkey | 2022 | Alta, Turkmen, Ulutuna |
| MG Bracewell | New Zealand v Ireland | 2022 | MR Adair, BJ McCarthy, CA Young |
| S Wickramasekara | Czech Republic v Estonia | 2022 | Habib Khan, Maidul Islam, MMR Obili |
| Habib Khan | Estonia v France | 2022 | S Santhirakumaran, Zain Ahmad, Jubaid Ahamed |
| Shahrukh Quddus | Kuwait v Bahrain | 2022 | Umer Toor, Shahbaz Badar, Haider Butt |
| KP Meiyappan | UAE v Sri Lanka | 2022/23 | PBB Rajapaksa, KIC Asalanka, MD Shanaka |
