Pakistani quick Shaheen Shah Afridi was at his fiery best in a Blast 2023 match for Nottinghamshire against Birmingham Bears, as he dismissed four opposition batters in the first over of the innings, thus entering the record books for this unique feat.
Afridi got rid of Alex Davies (0), Chris Benjamin (0), Dan Mousley (1) and Ed Barnard (0), producing unplayable deliveries that left the Bears reeling at 7-4 after the first over in the run chase of 169.
Afridi registered figures of 4/29, but in vain as they lost the match by 2 wickets, catapulting Birmingham to the knockout stages. Nottinghamshire still have an opportunity to themselves qualify, but need to beat Leicestershire Foxes at Trent Bridge in their final match.
The extraordinary over by Afridi began with a 5-wides, but the seamer quickly plucked wickets off his next two deliveries, and then in the fifth and sixth balls of the over.
Afridi's stunning first over also meant that the Bears found themselves behind by three runs on the DLS chart when the game was interrupted by rain.
Birmingham Bears' opening batter Rob Yates was the hero, as he scored 65 runs from 46 deliveries, an innings that comprised five sixes. He received support from Jacob Bethell (27) and Jake Lintott (27*) in the middle and latter stages of the innings.
Nottingham will face Leicester on Sunday in their last match before the playoffs start on Thursday.
