Brett Randell Takes Five Wickets In Five Balls, First In 254-Year First-Class Cricket

Brett Randell produced a historic bowling spell on March 8, 2026.

“New Zealander Brett Randell has become the first bowler in the 254-year history of first-class cricket to take five wickets in five balls”

BBC

He became the first player in first-class cricket to take five wickets in five successive deliveries.

BBC

The feat occurred on day two of the Plunket Shield match at Napier's McLean Park, where Randell was playing for Central Districts against Northern Districts.

Multiple reports record the milestone as unprecedented in the long history of first-class cricket.

The sequence of dismissals that created the record was vivid and rapid.

Randell cleaned up the top order.

Crictoday

He bowled Henry Cooper with the last ball of his second over.

He removed Jeet Raval with the first ball of his next over.

He grabbed Joe Carter (caught behind).

He grabbed Robbie/Robert O’Donnell (caught in the slips).

He then bowled Kristian Clarke as the fifth consecutive victim.

Match accounts give ball-by-ball detail of each dismissal and the order in which the wickets fell.

Randell's final figures underline the impact of the burst: he finished with career-best figures of 7-25 as Northern Districts were all out for 82, replying to Central Districts' 373.

“Brett Randell Makes Cricket History with Unprecedented Five-in-Five Fast bowler Brett Randell made cricket history by becoming the first player to take five wickets in five balls in first-class cricket”

Devdiscourse

Multiple outlets noted the 30-year-old's previous first-class best was 6-45, and several reports recorded that he took six wickets in eight balls during the same sequence.

Outlets emphasised the feat's historical significance, citing records from the Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians and long-running first-class records to show the rarity of five wickets in five balls at the first-class level.

Commentators compared Randell's five-in-five to Curtis Campher's five-in-five in a domestic T20 last year, which remained the only similar professional instance prior to Randell's effort.

Dhaka Tribune

Several articles framed the achievement as unique in first-class history stretching back to the first recognised matches in 1772.

Reporters recorded that Ben Pomare denied a sixth consecutive wicket.

“Matches (6) T20 World Cup (1) India Women in Australia (1) NZ-W vs ZIM-W (1) Sheffield Shield (3) Previous UpcomingFinal • T20 World Cup • Ahmedabad ScheduleTable RESULT Only Test • India Women in Australia ScheduleTable RESULT 2nd ODI • NZ-W vs ZIM-W Schedule RESULT 25th Match • Sheffield Shield ScheduleTable RESULT 26th Match • Sheffield Shield ScheduleTable RESULT 27th Match • Sheffield Shield ScheduleTable Next Five in five”

ESPNcricinfo

They noted the spell reduced Northern Districts to 9-5 at one point.

The Hindu

Reporters also recorded Randell reacting with amazement after the effort.

Several outlets captured his age (30).

Several outlets captured that he plays for Central Districts/Central Stags.

Several outlets captured his post-match remark expressing how stunned he was by the performance.