Yuzvendra Chahal claimed his maiden IPL hat-trick to guide Rajasthan Royals to a seven-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders. With 40 required off the last four overs, it was Kolkata’s game to lose, but Chahal’s intervention saw Kolkata losing four wickets in the 17th over, with the game soon slipping out of their hands.

Having leaked 38 runs in his first three overs, the onus was on Chahal to contain Kolkata’s batters. He started with tossed-up delivery that resulted in Venkatesh Iyer’s dismissal. On the fourth ball, he pinned the set batter Shreyas Iyer leg-before, and then had Shivam Mavi caught by Riyan Parag. The hat-trick ball was an absolute ripper, turning sharply to take Pat Cummins’ edge before landing into Sanju Samson’s gloves.

It was Chahal’s first hat-trick in this competition, and the fifth by a Rajasthan bowler. Ajit Chandila, Pravin Tambe, Shane Watson and Shreyas Gopal are the other players who achieved this feat. 

The whole team burst into celebration, sprinting joyously to Yuzvendra Chahal , who slid down to the ground, recreating a viral meme from the 2019 World Cup. 

“It’s like my old meme, you know. In 2019 World Cup when I didn’t play a game and was lying near the boundary,” the player said about his celebration.

Kuldeep Yadav and Rashid Khan also took to Twitter to congratulate the Rajasthan leggie.