West Indies fast bowler Jerome Taylor

The 22-year-old fast bowler removed Mike Hussey and Brett Lee with the last two balls of the 48^th over of the match, and added the wicket of Brad Hogg with the first ball of the final over.

It meant Australia’s last wicket pair of Nathan Bracken and Glenn McGrath required a highly improbable 15 off the remaining five balls and Taylor confined them to four.

Taylor revealed that he was so engulfed by the gripping closing stages of the game that he did not even realise what he had achieved.

“Actually I did not even realise that I got a hat-trick until after the game, when it was brought to my attention just before an interview,” he said. 

“I was so focussed on ensuring that we win the game, and that I bowled the ball in the right areas that it did not even occur to me or any of my teammates.”

Taylor seemed surprised when television presenter Laxman Sivaramakrishnan asked him in a post-match interview how he felt about getting a hat-trick.

“We all just wanted to win so badly,” said Taylor, who ended with four wickets for 49 runs from his allotment of 10 overs.

“It’s a very precious feeling being the first West Indian to get a hat trick in an ODI. It is very special and, as a fast bowler, to get a hat-trick on that pitch, I feel pretty pleased about it.”

Two years ago, Taylor was called into the West Indies squad at the age of 18, after he was named the most promising fast bowler in the 2003 Carib Beer Series.

In his first season, Taylor picked up 21 wickets in six first-class matches, which included a spell of eight for 59 in Jamaica’s win over Trinidad & Tobago.

A back injury kept Taylor out of international cricket however, despite he picked up 26 wickets in the 2004-05 season.

Taylor took 12 wickets in five matches for Jamaica this year, and he gave enough evidence to the West Indies selection panel that he was ready for a recall.

During this year’s home series against Zimbabwe and India, Taylor proved himself beyond a shadow of doubt.