Craig Kieswetter facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Craig Kieswetter

Personal information
Full name	Craig Kieswetter
Born	(1987-11-28) 28 November 1987 (age 37) Johannesburg, Transvaal Province, South Africa
Nickname	Hobnob
Batting	Right-handed
Bowling	Right-arm off break
Role	Opening batter; wicket-keeper
International information
National side	England (2010–2013)
ODI debut (cap 214)	28 February 2010 v Bangladesh
Last ODI	19 January 2013 v India
T20I debut (cap 49)	5 May 2010 v West Indies
Last T20I	29 September 2012 v New Zealand
Domestic team information
Years	Team
2007–2015	Somerset (squad no. 22)
2013/14	Brisbane Heat (squad no. 22)
2014	Warriors
Career statistics
Competition ODI T20I FC LA Matches 46 25 115 134 Runs scored 1,054 526 5,728 4,254 Batting average 30.11 21.91 39.23 39.38 100s/50s 1/5 0/3 11/31 11/17 Top score 107 63 164 143 Balls bowled – – 54 12 Wickets – – 2 1 Bowling average – – 14.50 19.00 5 wickets in innings – – 0 0 10 wickets in match – – 0 0 Best bowling – – 2/3 1/19 Catches/stumpings 53/12 17/3 331/12 136/26
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 26 September 2014

Craig Kieswetter (born 28 November 1987) is a professional golfer from England. He used to be a cricketer. He played 71 matches for the England cricket team between 2010 and 2013.

Craig was born and grew up in Johannesburg, South Africa. He moved to England to finish his education. In 2007, he started playing county cricket for Somerset. Three years later, he played his first international match. This was a One Day International (ODI) against Bangladesh.

Craig was a wicket-keeper and a batsman. He was known for playing well in one-day matches. All his international games were either ODIs or Twenty20 Internationals. He was a key player when England won the 2010 ICC World Twenty20. Sadly, his cricket career ended early due to an injury. He then became a professional golfer.

Early Life and Cricket Start

Craig Kieswetter was born in Johannesburg. His father, Wayne, was Afrikaner, and his mother, Belinda, was Scottish. He went to Diocesan College in Cape Town. From ages 13 to 18, he played junior cricket for Western Province.

Craig was disappointed when he was told to play club cricket for a few years before joining the main team. So, at 18, he decided to move to England to play cricket. He studied for a year at Millfield school. There, a former Somerset bowler, Mark Davis, noticed him. Somerset quickly signed him up.

At the 2006 Under-19s World Cup in Sri Lanka, Craig played for South Africa. He won a Man of the Match award for scoring 80 runs in a game against the United States.

Joining Somerset County Cricket Club

Craig first played for Somerset's second team in May 2006. He scored 94 runs in his first game. By the end of that season, he had scored 245 runs. His good performance led Somerset to make him one of their main wicket-keepers in 2007.

In April 2007, he played his first one-day match for Somerset. He scored 69 runs and made an amazing catch. The next month, he played his first first-class game. He scored 63 runs in that match.

Craig kept playing well in 2007 and 2008. He won the NBC Denis Compton Award twice. This award is for the "most promising young player." He scored many half-centuries in both first-class and one-day cricket. In 2008, he scored his first century for Somerset. He made 121 runs and shared a huge 302-run partnership with Marcus Trescothick.

In 2009, Craig scored over 1,000 first-class runs for the only time in his career. He scored 150 runs in a match against Warwickshire. A few weeks later, he scored 106 runs against Durham. He scored two more centuries that year. In one-day cricket, he scored 138 runs against Warwickshire. He also helped Somerset reach the final of the 2009 Twenty20 Cup.

Playing for England

Craig's strong performances for Somerset led to him being considered for the England team. He trained with the England Performance Programme squad. Graeme Smith, the captain of South Africa, wanted Craig to play for South Africa. But Craig really wanted to play for England.

International Debut and World Cup Win

In 2010, Craig became eligible to play for England. This was because his mother was Scottish, and he had lived in England for four years. He joined the England Lions squad. In a warm-up match against the senior England team, he scored 81 runs. This helped the Lions beat the main team.

Craig Kieswetter keeping wicket in a one-day match against Australia in 2010.

After this, Craig was added to the senior England squad. He played his first ODI against Bangladesh on 28 February 2010. He scored 19 runs in that game. In his third match, he scored his first international century, making 107 runs. England won the series 3–0.

Craig was then chosen as the only wicket-keeper for the 2010 ICC World Twenty20. He opened the batting with Michael Lumb. Their good batting helped England reach the final. In the final, Craig was England's top-scorer with 63 runs. He was named the man of the match. England won their first major international cricket title! Craig scored 222 runs in the tournament.

Ups and Downs with England

After the World Twenty20, Craig's form dropped. He was left out of the ODI squad for a series against Pakistan. He still played in the T20I squad but didn't score many runs. He then played for the England Lions again.

In 2011, Craig started the season well for Somerset. He scored 308 runs in his first four one-day matches. This earned him a recall to England's one-day teams. In his first ODI back, he was England's top-scorer with 61 runs. He also scored 72 runs in another match. Later that year, he scored his highest first-class score of 164 runs for Somerset.

Craig remained England's wicket-keeper for matches against India. He struggled a bit in English conditions. However, he was praised for his attacking batting. He was given a contract by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

In 2012, Craig played less in ODIs for England. He was praised for his 43 runs in one match. But his wicket-keeping was still being worked on. He kept opening the batting in T20Is. However, he lost his spot in the T20I team after a match against New Zealand. That was his last international Twenty20 match. He played 25 T20Is, scoring 526 runs.

Craig Kieswetter batting for Somerset in 2010

Despite his international struggles, Craig had a great season with Somerset in 2012. He scored 848 first-class runs. In 2013, he kept his place in the ODI team for a tour of India. But after three matches, he was replaced by Jos Buttler. Craig played 46 ODIs, scoring 1,054 runs.

Later Career and Injury

In 2013, Craig and Jos Buttler were competing for the wicket-keeper spot at Somerset. Craig started the season as the wicket-keeper. But he broke his thumb and was out for six weeks. He had a very strong Twenty20 season, scoring 517 runs. He tried to be a more responsible player. At the end of the season, Jos Buttler left Somerset, making Craig the main wicket-keeper.

Craig also played for the Brisbane Heat in Australia in 2013–14. He scored 192 runs in eight matches. He was also called up for England's squad for the 2014 ICC World Twenty20, but he didn't play. He started the 2014 season well for Somerset.

Career-Ending Injury

On 12 July 2014, Craig suffered a serious injury while batting for Somerset. A fast ball went through a gap in his helmet and hit him in the face. He broke his nose and fractured his cheekbone. He also had double vision for a while.

The injuries were first thought to be serious but not career-ending. He had facial surgery. He returned to play for Somerset later in 2014. He even scored a half-century in his first match back. He also played for the Warriors in South Africa.

However, Craig continued to have vision problems. In December 2014, he said his vision was still not fully recovered. He announced that he would not play in the 2015 season. In June 2015, at age 27, he announced his retirement from professional cricket. He said he could no longer play at the high standard he wanted. He found it especially hard to bat under floodlights. His vision in his right eye was only about 80-85% normal.

After Craig's injury, and another serious incident where cricketer Phillip Hughes died, new rules were made. From 2016, professional cricketers in England had to wear helmets. The gap between the helmet's grille and peak was also made smaller.

Playing Style

Craig Kieswetter's confident and attacking batting style was often compared to Kevin Pietersen, another England batsman. He was strong at hitting the ball on both sides of the field. He had a typical South African batting stance, holding his bat high.

He was generally more known for his batting than his wicket-keeping. Even so, he was sometimes thought to be a better wicket-keeper than some of his rivals for England. Because international teams wanted batsmen who could also keep wicket, Craig was chosen mainly for his batting skills. For a couple of matches in 2012, he even bowled off spin for Somerset and took three wickets.

Somerset tried Craig in different batting positions. He started as a middle-order batsman. But in one-day cricket, he often opened the batting. When he joined the England team, he was chosen to open the batting. This was because he was good at hitting the ball hard and scoring runs quickly. Later, he moved down the batting order for England to make space for Kevin Pietersen.

Golf Career

After Craig retired from cricket, his father suggested he try golf. He had played golf as a child in South Africa. He took lessons with a golf instructor, David Leadbetter. Leadbetter suggested he try to become a professional golfer.

Craig started playing in amateur golf tournaments and did well. He then aimed to become a professional and play on the European Tour. In late 2016, he played in some smaller golf tournaments. In early 2017, he officially became a professional golfer. In March, he earned a spot to play on the MENA Golf Tour for the 2017 season. He played regularly on this tour. In September, he won his biggest prize of the season, earning US$360.

Images for kids

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  Craig Kieswetter batting against Worcestershire in 2010