Odisha fast bowler Rajesh Mohanty has become the first cricketer from his state to pick up a hat-trick in List A cricket. Mohanty achieved the landmark feat during the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025–26 fixture against Services on Friday, December 26, at Alur Cricket Stadium III in Bengaluru.
The 25-year-old claimed his first scalp in the seventh over after Odisha won the toss and elected to field. He first shattered Sagar Dahiya’s stumps before trapping Ayush Shukla leg-before wicket to pick up his second successive dismissal. Mohanty then completed his hat-trick in emphatic fashion by dismissing Ravi Chauhan for a golden duck.
Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26 Updates
He finished with impressive figures of 3/25 in nine overs as Odisha bundled out Services for just 83, which was their second-lowest total in the history of the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Mohanty received excellent support from Sambit S Baral, who scalped 4/21 in 8.5 overs, while Badal Biswal also chipped in with two wickets, returning figures of 2/20.
Mohanty’s achievement comes on the back of a recent setback at the IPL 2026 mini auction, where he went unsold. The seamer had registered himself with a base price of 30 lakh but failed to attract any bidders during the auction held in Abu Dhabi.
He has featured in 38 List A matches so far, scalping 41 wickets, while he has also taken 124 wickets from 34 First-Class matches. In T20 cricket, he has picked up 27 wickets from 28 innings.
Meanwhile, in the second innings, Odisha were also rocked during their chase by Poonam Poonia, who returned figures of 4/27, and Nitin Yadav, who claimed 2/20. However, it took the calm and composed innings of Sandeep Pattnaik, who remained unbeaten on 32 off 69 deliveries, to guide Odisha home in 24.3 overs.
– Ends
