Afghanistan spin sensation Rashid Khan farewelled the Big Bash season in sublime style on Wednesday night, claiming a rare ‘team hat-trick’ on his milestone 300th professional T20 game – and twice nearly bagging a hat-trick of his own.
Khan became just the third man to claim a BBL six-wicket haul with the remarkable figures of 6/17 off four overs as the Adelaide Strikers leapt from bottom on the ladder to fifth place following just their third victory of the campaign.
The 23-year-old had earlier been dismissed in bizarre fashion by his international teammate Mujeeb ur Rahman, with the pair set to leave the BBL for international duty following the clash between Khan’s Strikers and Mujeeb’s Brisbane Heat.
But Khan got his own back – and then some – by dismissing his countryman and skittling the rest of the Heat for just 90 runs in reply to Adelaide’s 4-161.
Khan was whacked for 11 runs in his first over, but captain Peter Siddle backed his bowler and was immediately rewarded for his decision to keep Khan on with a ‘team’ hat-trick (where a run-out is one of the three dismissals, since a run-out is not credited to the bowler’s figures).
