Graeme Smith facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Graeme Smith

Smith on the field against Somerset in July 2012
Personal information
Full name	Graeme Craig Smith
Born	(1981-02-01) 1 February 1981 (age 44) Johannesburg, Transvaal Province, South Africa
Nickname	Biff
Height	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Batting	Left-handed
Bowling	Right arm off break
Role	Opening batsman
International information
National side	South Africa (2002–2014)
Test debut (cap 288)	8 March 2002 v Australia
Last Test	1 March 2014 v Australia
ODI debut (cap 68)	30 March 2002 v Australia
Last ODI	27 November 2013 v Pakistan
ODI shirt no.	15
T20I debut (cap 12)	21 October 2005 v New Zealand
Last T20I	16 October 2011 v Australia
T20I shirt no.	15
Domestic team information
Years	Team
1999/2000	Gauteng
2000	Hampshire
2000/01–2003/04	Western Province
2004/05–2014	Cape Cobras
2005	Somerset
2008–2010	Rajasthan Royals
2011	Pune Warriors India
2013–2014	Surrey
Career statistics
Competition Test ODI T20I FC Matches 117 197 33 165 Runs scored 9,265 6,989 982 12,916 Batting average 48.25 37.98 31.67 48.73 100s/50s 27/38 10/47 0/5 37/51 Top score 277 141 89* 311 Balls bowled 1,418 1,026 24 1,786 Wickets 8 18 0 11 Bowling average 110.62 52.83 – 102.90 5 wickets in innings 0 0 – 0 10 wickets in match 0 0 – 0 Best bowling 2/145 3/30 – 2/145 Catches/stumpings 169/– 105/– 18/– 241/–
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 18 May 2014

Graeme Craig Smith (born 1 February 1981) is a famous South African cricket player and commentator. He played for the South African national team in all types of cricket games. In 2003, when he was only 22, he became the captain of the national team. This made him South Africa's youngest ever captain! He led the Test team until he retired in 2014. Graeme Smith is known as one of South Africa's best captains, having led the team to a record 54 Test wins.

He was a tall, left-handed opening batsman. Many people think he is one of the greatest opening batsmen of all time. During a tour in England in 2003, he scored over 200 runs in two Test matches in a row. One of these scores, 259 runs at Lord's, is the highest score ever made by a foreign player at that famous ground. In 2013, Smith became only the second South African to score over 9,000 runs in Test matches.

Graeme Smith was also famous for his strong opening partnerships with Herschelle Gibbs. They created South Africa's most successful opening partnership ever. Smith was part of all four of South Africa's opening partnerships that scored over 300 runs. In 2008, he and Neil McKenzie set a world record by scoring 415 runs together for the first wicket against Bangladesh. On 3 March 2014, he announced he was retiring from international cricket.

Early Life and Family

Graeme Smith was born and grew up in Johannesburg, South Africa. His parents, Graham and Janet, were from Scotland. He went to King Edward VII School. Before playing for the main national team, Smith played for the South Africa under-19s. He played three Test matches and seven One Day Internationals (ODIs) for the under-19 team, including five games in the Under 19 Cricket World Cup. He scored many half-centuries in these games.

In 2011, Smith married an Irish singer named Morgan Deane. They had a daughter, Cadence Christine, in 2012, and a son, Carter McMorrin, in 2013. Later, Graeme and Morgan decided to separate. In 2016, Smith had a third child, a boy, with his girlfriend Romy Lanfranchi. Smith is also a big fan of the Liverpool F.C. football team.

Playing for Clubs

Graeme Smith played for several cricket teams in South Africa. He played for the Cape Cobras, but his international games meant he couldn't play for them very often. He also played for other South African teams like Western Province.

He also played county cricket in England for Somerset in 2005. He even captained the club for part of that season. While playing for Somerset, he scored an amazing 311 runs in one game against Leicestershire. This was his first triple century in first-class cricket. He also helped Somerset win the Twenty20 Cup trophy, scoring 64 runs in the final game.

In 2008, Graeme Smith played in the first-ever Indian Premier League (IPL) for the Rajasthan Royals. He had a very successful opening partnership with Swapnil Asnodkar. The captain of the Royals, Shane Warne, said that playing together helped them become friends, even though they had been rivals before.

In 2012, Graeme Smith became the new captain of Surrey County Cricket Club in England, starting in the 2013 season.

International Cricket Career

Smith played his first Test match for South Africa in 2002 against Australia. He scored 68 runs in his second innings. Soon after, he was promoted to open the batting. In his third Test match, against Bangladesh, he scored 200 runs. In the next series against Pakistan, Smith (who scored 151) and Gibbs (228) made a huge partnership of 368 runs for the first wicket. This was a national record at the time.

After the 2003 Cricket World Cup, Smith was chosen to be South Africa's captain. Some people thought he was too young and didn't have enough experience, as he had only played eight Tests and 22 ODIs. But Smith, at 22 years and 82 days old, became the youngest ever South African captain.

Amazing Scores in England

During the 2003 tour of England, Smith scored double centuries in two Test matches in a row. He made 277 runs at Edgbaston and 259 runs at Lord's. His 277 runs was the highest score by a South African in a Test match until 2010. His 259 runs is still the highest score made at Lord's by a foreign player. These great performances impressed many, and England's captain, Nasser Hussain, even retired after the Edgbaston match. Smith was named the player of the series.

Leading the Team

In 2005, South Africa won a Test series in the West Indies, with Smith scoring centuries in three matches in a row. However, their tours against Australia in 2005–06 were tough, and they lost both series. But Smith led his team to a famous victory over Australia in a One Day International in 2006. Australia had set a world record score of 434 runs, but South Africa chased it down, scoring 438 runs! Smith scored 90 runs off just 55 balls in that exciting game.

In 2007, Smith's South African team became the top-ranked ODI team in the world for a short time. In the 2007 Cricket World Cup, he started the tournament by scoring four half-centuries in a row, which was a first for a captain.

Smith in 2010.

Record-Breaking Partnerships

In 2008, during a Test match against Bangladesh, Smith (who scored 232) and Neil McKenzie (226) set a new world record. They put on 415 runs for the first wicket, beating a record that had stood since 1956! This was Smith's fourth opening partnership of over 300 runs, which is a Test record.

Later in 2008, Smith scored 108 runs in the second innings of a Test against England at Lord's. He and McKenzie again had a double-century opening partnership, helping South Africa draw a match that seemed lost. He also scored 154 not out in another Test, leading South Africa to win the series in England for the first time since 1965.

In December 2008, Smith led the first South African team to win a Test series against Australia in Australia. This was Australia's first home defeat in 16 years. In one match, Smith even batted with a broken hand to try and save the game, showing incredible bravery.

For his great performances in 2008, the ICC and ESPNcricinfo named him captain of the World Test XI.

Retirement from Captaincy

After South Africa lost in the quarter-finals of the 2011 Cricket World Cup, Smith decided to step down as captain for ODI and Twenty20 matches. AB de Villiers took over from him.

In 2012, Smith led South Africa to another Test series victory against England. This win put South Africa back at the top of the ICC Test rankings. It was also special because Smith had now led South Africa to series wins that caused three different English captains to retire!

In October 2019, he was made an honorary life member of the Marylebone Cricket Club for his amazing achievements in cricket.

Captaincy Records

Graeme Smith is the most successful Test captain in history, with 53 wins. He is also the only player to have captained a team in over 100 Test matches.

Coaching and Leadership Roles

In December 2019, Graeme Smith was appointed as the director of cricket for the South Africa national cricket team. He held this important role for three years, until March 2022. He also became the Commissioner for the SA20 League, a new cricket tournament.

Cricket Records Held by Graeme Smith

• He holds the world record for captaining the most Test matches (109 matches).
• He has the world record for the highest number of wins as a Test captain (53 wins).
• He scored the most centuries (15) as a captain in Test matches that his team won.
• He holds the record for the most catches (82) by a non-wicketkeeper in Test wins.
• He was the fastest South African cricketer to reach 1,000 Test runs.
• He scored the most Test runs as a captain (8,659 runs).
• He and Jacques Kallis set the record for the highest partnership (84 runs) for any wicket by players making their debut in Twenty20 Internationals.

See also

• List of international cricket centuries by Graeme Smith