New Zealand quick Kyle Jamieson captured a sensational hat-trick in Auckland’s 2020/21 Plunket Shield game against Central Districts, earning, in the process, a case of wine from teammate Will Sommerville.
Jamieson, the 25-year-old quick who impressed on Test debut against India earlier this year, bowled a spectacular inducker to complete the hat-trick, sending the batsman Brad Schmulian’s off-stump cartwheeling, with extravagant seam movement leaving the batsman, who left the delivery alone, helpless.
Districts, who were 91-3 in response to Auckland’s first-innings score of 167, slipped to 91-6, with the right-arm quick finishing with figures of 5-41 in 17 overs.
Jamieson had picked up a five-wicket haul in his the previous game against Otago as well. He claimed the wickets of Tom Bruce, Dan Cleaver and Schmulian in the space of three balls – but it was the hat-trick wicket that stood out, the prodigious movement swerving the delivery late into the batsman, who decided to leave the ball that pitched on a length. It clattered into his off-stump and sent it away dramatically, sparking wild celebrations in the Auckland team.
Schmulian didn’t have the heart to look back at the destruction and trudged off – at the non-striker’s end, opener George Worker, playing a lone hand, was seen quietly rehearsing his forward defence in anticipation of a similar gem, and perhaps as a subtle message to his departing partner.
Even if it weren’t the third wicket in a hat-trick, this would still be an all-timer of a stump cartwheel pic.twitter.com/L9xBfgTqRN
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) October 28, 2020
Jamieson didn’t just earn a five-wicket haul next to his name with the spell – as reported by New Zealand Herald, Jamieson’s bagged his team a case of wine from teammate Will Sommerville, whose parents reportedly own a Central Otago winery. Sommerville had promised Jamieson a free delivery if the bowler could turn his streak of two wickets in two deliveries into a hat-trick.
“I told mid-off I was just going to bowl a big inny (in-swinger) to try to make him play,” Jamieson was quoted as saying. “I tried to get a little bit greedy and bring it back and was lucky to hit the sticks a couple of times.”