Kuldeep Yadav took his first ODI hat-trick in his first year in the format.
India faced Australia at Eden Gardens in Kolkata in the 2nd ODI of the 5-match series in 2017. Having won the first match, skipper Virat Kohli chose to bat first in Kolkata. The Indians posted 252 on the board with the help of half-centuries from opener Ajinkya Rahane and Kohli.
Steve Smith (59) and Travis Head (39) were anchoring the innings well after the openers fell for 1 run each. Kuldeep Yadav was not bowling at his best with half sleeves and went back into the dressing room to change.
Never missed my coach while playing with MS Dhoni, says Kuldeep Yadav
Yadav recalled in an interview on the KKR website, "I remember I bowled the first few overs and I wasn’t comfortable bowling in half t-shirts. So, I went back to the dressing room and changed into my full-sleeve jersey."
"I spoke to Virat bhai and asked him if I could bowl from the other end. He said once Chahal’s spell was over, I could bowl from that end. I struck a very good rhythm and started bowling in the spot," he added.
He came in with much determination and began bowling well. He castled Matthew Wade and then trapped Ashton Agar off consecutive deliveries in the 33rd over of the innings. Before the hat-trick ball, he was confused as to which variation to bowl and thus asked MS Dhoni.
The 25-year-old said, "I got my first wicket of Matthew Wade and then in the next ball, I plucked Ashton Agar. For the third ball, I asked Mahi bhai (MS Dhoni) what to bowl. When you have so many variations, you get confused. He just let me do whatever I felt was right but suggested that I kept it to the stumps."
“Had told my mom I would take a hat-trick,” Kuldeep Yadav on his second ODI hat-trick
"I kept a slip and gully in place. Luckily I bowled a good ball and got the edge. Getting a hat-trick at Eden Garden, that too in the first year of international cricket, is a big thing and this was one of the biggest moments of my life," he concluded.
Kuldeep Yadav took another hat-trick in an ODI against West Indies in December 2019 and became the only Indian bowler with two hat-tricks in international cricket.