June 11, 1999 | Saqlain Mushtaq Claims Second Hat-Trick in World Cup History

On this day (June 11) in 1999, Saqlain Mushtaq became only the second bowler to take a hat-trick in a World Cup.

The Pakistan off-spinner achieved the feat against Zimbabwe in the Super Six match of the 1999 World Cup at The Oval in London. Saqlain got Henry Olonga, Adam Huckle and Pommie Mbangwa in three successive balls to bring a swift end to Zimbabwe's innings. Pakistan ended up winning by a massive margin of 148 runs.

Pakistan had opted to bat first and posted 271 for 9, with Saeed Anwar leading the way with a century (103).

Zimbabwe came nowhere close. Opener Neil Johnson fought with 54 off 94 balls but he had little support from his teammates. Only two other batsmen got to double digits as Shoaib Akhtar, Azhar Mahmood and Abdul Razzaq ran through the order.

Saqlain's hat-trick came at an almost inconsequential time in the match, although that's nothing to take the credit away. He got the hat-trick in the 41st over, with Olonga, Huckle and Mbangwa falling in the first three balls.

With that, Saqlain also became the second bowler to take two hat-tricks in ODIs.

The victory was crucial for Pakistan, who had lost three consecutive matches going into the game. Had they lost to Zimbabwe, they would have been knocked out of the tournament as well. They ended up winning against Zimbabwe and got some momentum going into the semifinal.

Pakistan ended up reaching the final of the World Cup 1999, where they lost to Australia.

Saqlain went on to play 49 Tests and 169 ODIs for Pakistan, picking up 208 and 288 wickets respectively.