Kishor Kumar Sadhak, a 37-year-old spin bowler from Ipswich, made headlines with a stunning performance for the Ipswich and Colchester Cricket Club. Those were the words describing Sadhak Alikhan’s brilliant performance earlier this year during a recent game against Kesgrave in the Two Counties Championship Division Six. He received two hat-tricks in consecutive overs, something hardly ever seen on a cricket field!
Sadhak’s incredible run, though, fizzled out in the best possible way – in the fourth and fifth overs of his six-over spell. He bowled with control and variety to collect the wickets of both Black Caps openers and end the match with figures of 6-21. Perhaps most astoundingly, five of the batters he retired went out without scoring a run, allowing his overpowering performance to truly shine. The tournament ended with Ipswich and Colchester Cricket Club winning by 7 wickets.
After playing for almost two and a half hours, Sadhak was overcome with happiness in the aftermath of the game. Deceptively simple, his final wicket — which capped off his second career hat-trick — sent him into raptures.
“When I saw that the person was bowled out, I was flying in the sky. It was amazing.” – Kishor Kumar Sadhak
Sadhak’s performance is particularly impressive when you consider how even such a feat is extremely rare. Only four cricketers have taken two hat-tricks in back-to-back overs. At the end of 2016/beginning of 2017, Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc became a member of this exclusive group. The last English cricketer to do so was Jimmy Matthews, who accomplished the incredible feat 113 years ago.
Reflecting on his place within the team, Sadhak humbly stated, “There are lots of other players who play really well. So, I wouldn’t say I’m the first person on the teamsheet but I will be in a priority position!”
Later that day, Sadhak was flooded with congratulatory calls from friends and opponents-turned-friends.
“After the match I got plenty of phone calls,” – Kishor Kumar Sadhak
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