Khaled had forgotten about the hat-trick - Prothom Alo English

Playing for Kent against Lancashire in the ongoing four-day County Championship Division Two match, Bangladesh pacer Khaled Ahmed took 8 wickets, and help his team win a vital gameKent CricketIt was so close! To be more precise, it fell short by just one ball. What was it? Khaled Ahmed’s chance to become the first Bangladeshi bowler to take a hat-trick in county cricket.

Playing for Kent against Lancashire in the ongoing four-day County Championship Division Two match, Khaled took two wickets with the final two balls of Lancashire’s first innings.

He needed to take a wicket with the first ball of Kent’s second innings to complete the hat-trick. Instead, he got his wicket with the second ball. Khaled, however, was happy with what he achieved. Interestingly, he had apparently forgotten all about the hat-trick!

Khaled had every reason to be pleased. He was playing his first home match for Kent against Lancashire and finished with eight wickets on his home debut, five in the first innings and three in the second. So there was little disappointment over missing out on the hat-trick.

At the end of the second day’s play, Khaled said, “I had completely forgotten about the hat-trick. Someone told me, ‘You missed the hat-trick.’ Of course, I would have liked to get the hat-trick, but overall I’m happy. Everyone is praising my bowling. I’m happy.”

In Kent’s previous match, Bangladesh’s Hasan Mahmud had been with Khaled and led the team’s bowling attack. However, Hasan returned home after completing his county stint as part of his workload management. In his absence, Khaled carried greater responsibility with the ball.

Explaining his approach in the match, Khaled said, “I tried to bowl in the right areas. I tried to stick to that process. The first spell was a bit slow, but the pace increased after lunch. We were bowling in partnerships, and then the wickets came. I miss Hasan. He did send me a video wishing me good luck.”

Lancashire, who were bowled out for 161 in their first innings, managed 192 in their second to set Kent a target of 140 after conceding a 63-run first-innings lead. Kent chased down the target for the loss of three wickets, finishing on 142 for 3 to win by seven wickets.