Introduction
Hat-tricks in T20 cricket are rare. Hat-tricks by leg-spinners — bowlers whose primary function is to take wickets through deception rather than pace — are rarer still. Two hat-tricks in a single IPL career? Only three bowlers in the competition’s 17-year history have achieved that. On May 3, 2025, Yuzvendra Chahal became one of them for the second time, playing for Punjab Kings against Chennai Super Kings, taking three wickets in three balls at the end of an innings that was already in motion when he delivered three deliveries that the CSK lower order had no answer for.
The Hat-Trick Ball by Ball
Chahal’s second IPL hat-trick came in the death overs of CSK’s innings. The victims were Deepak Hooda (bowled by a wrong’un that turned sharply), Anshul Kamboj (given out LBW to a delivery that skidded on), and Noor Ahmad (stumped, advancing down the pitch against a faster delivery). Three deliveries, three different modes of dismissal, three different wrong-footed batters who had each calculated the situation differently and each found that Chahal was a step ahead. His final figures were 4/28 — four wickets in one of cricket’s most rewarding bowling performances in a single innings. CSK, who had been building towards a competitive total, collapsed from 184/5 to 190 all out — leaving what should have been a productive finish looking ordinary.
The Context — How This Hat-Trick Was Different From the First
Chahal’s first IPL hat-trick came in 2022, playing for Rajasthan Royals against KKR, in the powerplay phase when the batting team was set for attack. His technique in that situation — using the toppie as the wicket-taking ball in an aggressive over — was specific to the powerplay conditions. His 2025 hat-trick, in the death overs against CSK for PBKS, required different skill: the ability to bowl the wrong’un with enough disguise that a batter who has been watching closely for 4-5 overs still cannot pick it. The fact that Chahal could take two hat-tricks in completely different phases of innings, against different types of batters, using different primary deliveries, speaks to the breadth of his skill across the format’s demands.
What the Hat-Trick Means for Chahal’s Legacy as IPL’s Greatest Bowler
By May 2025, Yuzvendra Chahal was already the IPL’s all-time leading wicket-taker with 221 wickets. The second hat-trick added a distinction that no other IPL bowler has: two hat-tricks. Combined with his wicket-tally record, the double hat-trick achievement placed Chahal in a category of IPL bowling excellence that has no comparison. His career at RCB, then at Rajasthan Royals, and then at Punjab Kings has been defined by consistent, match-winning leg-spin across different franchises, different conditions, and different phases of cricket development. The IPL is a different competition in 2025 from what it was in 2013 when Chahal first played it — batting has improved enormously, dismissing batters is harder. Chahal has improved faster than the batters have.
DID YOU KNOW? The only other bowlers in IPL history with two hat-tricks each are Amit Mishra and Andrew Tye. Chahal’s 2025 hat-trick made him the third member of that exclusive club — and the only one who also holds the IPL’s all-time wickets record.
Final Verdict Two hat-tricks. More than 220 wickets. The all-time leading wicket-taker in IPL history. Yuzvendra Chahal’s place in the competition’s story is secured beyond any statistical argument. The second hat-trick was the exclamation point on a career that already had everything.