Wayne Parnell facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Wayne Parnell

Parnell in 2010
Personal information
Full name	Wayne Dillon Parnell
Born	(1989-07-30) 30 July 1989 (age 36) Port Elizabeth, Cape Province, South Africa
Nickname	Pigeon
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Batting	Left-handed
Bowling	Left-arm medium-fast
Role	Bowler
International information
National side	South Africa (2009–present)
Test debut (cap 307)	14 January 2010 v England
Last Test	6 October 2017 v Bangladesh
ODI debut (cap 94)	30 January 2009 v Australia
Last ODI	21 March 2023 v West Indies
ODI shirt no.	7
T20I debut (cap 39)	13 January 2009 v Australia
Last T20I	28 March 2023 v West Indies
Domestic team information
Years	Team
2006/07–2010/11	Eastern Province
2008/09–2017/18	Warriors
2009; 2017	Kent
2011–2013	Pune Warriors
2011–2013	Delhi Daredevils
2015/16–2017/18	Cape Cobras
2015/16–present	Western Province
2016–2017	Barbados Tridents
2018–2019	Worcestershire
2022–2023	Northern Superchargers
2022/23–2023/24	Pretoria Capitals
2023	Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Career statistics
Competition Test ODI FC LA Matches 6 73 84 187 Runs scored 67 574 2,728 2,267 Batting average 16.75 20.50 27.55 23.61 100s/50s 0/0 0/1 2/17 2/6 Top score 23 56 111* 129 Balls bowled 556 3,224 12,635 8,296 Wickets 15 99 242 248 Bowling average 27.60 30.40 29.91 30.22 5 wickets in innings 0 2 9 5 10 wickets in match 0 0 2 0 Best bowling 4/51 5/48 7/51 6/51 Catches/stumpings 3/– 13/– 25/– 35/–
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 27 May 2024

Wayne Dillon Parnell (born 30 July 1989) is a professional cricket player from South Africa. He has played for the South Africa national cricket team in all three main types of international cricket: Test matches, One Day Internationals (ODIs), and Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is). At home in South Africa, he played for teams like Cape Cobras, Warriors, and Eastern Province. He also played for many teams in cricket leagues around the world.

Early Life and School

Wayne Parnell was born in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, in 1989. He went to Grey High School in his hometown and finished school in 2007. After school, he studied Human Resource Management at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in Port Elizabeth.

Playing Cricket in South Africa

Parnell started playing first-class cricket for Eastern Province in October 2006. He was only 17 years old at the time. In his second first-class match, he took four wickets for only seven runs. In his fifth match, he achieved a "hat-trick" against Western Province. This means he took three wickets with three balls in a row. People started talking about him as a very promising young player.

In 2008, Parnell won awards for being the best under-19 player. He was named the CSA U19 Cricketer of the Year while playing for Eastern Province. In February 2022, Parnell became the captain of the Western Province team for the 2021–22 CSA T20 Challenge tournament.

Playing for County Teams

Kent County Cricket Club

In 2009, Wayne Parnell joined Kent County Cricket Club in England as an overseas player. In his first match for Kent against Essex, he took four wickets. He also scored 69 runs, which was his first time scoring more than 50 runs in a first-class match. He later scored 90 runs in another match for Kent.

Parnell left Kent to play for South Africa in the 2009 World Twenty20 tournament. After the tournament, he returned to play for Kent again for a few more weeks.

Other County Teams

In 2011, Parnell played for Sussex County Cricket Club for part of the season. In 2015, he played eight matches for Glamorgan in the 2015 NatWest t20 Blast before joining the South African team.

He returned to Kent in April 2017 for the start of the 2017 County Championship and 2017 Royal London One-Day Cup matches. He played until South Africa's tour of England began in May.

In September 2018, Parnell signed a special contract with Worcestershire. This meant he could not play international cricket for South Africa during that time. He left Worcestershire at the end of the 2020 season. In 2021, he played for Northamptonshire and took ten wickets in his second match for them.

Playing in Twenty20 Leagues

Indian Premier League (IPL)

Wayne Parnell was bought by the Delhi Daredevils team in the 2010 Indian Premier League (IPL) auction. He was one of the highest-paid South African cricketers in the tournament that year. He later played for Pune Warriors from 2011 to 2013. After that, he returned to play for the Delhi Daredevils in the 2014 season. In April 2023, Royal Challengers Bangalore signed Parnell to play for them in the 2023 Indian Premier League.

Other T20 Leagues

Parnell also played for the Barbados Tridents in the 2016 Caribbean Premier League. In June 2018, he was chosen to play for the Edmonton Royals in the first Global T20 Canada tournament. He was one of the top wicket-takers for his team in that tournament.

In September 2018, Parnell was part of the Kabul team in the first Afghanistan Premier League tournament. He was the leading wicket-taker for his team, getting 13 wickets in ten matches.

International Cricket Career

Parnell bowling in the Adelaide Oval nets, January 2009

Parnell was the captain of the South Africa team for the 2008 U/19 Cricket World Cup. He had also played in the 2006 U/19 Cricket World Cup. In the 2008 tournament, he took the most wickets, with 18 wickets. In the quarter-final against Bangladesh, he took six wickets for only eight runs and also scored 57 runs.

Parnell made his international debut for South Africa in a Twenty20 International match in Australia on 13 January 2009. He became the youngest player to receive a national contract from Cricket South Africa. He played an important role in South Africa's win in an ODI match against Australia, taking four wickets.

In May 2009, Parnell was chosen for the South African team for the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 in England. He had a great tournament, taking nine wickets. In a match against the host team, England, he took three wickets for 14 runs. In the next match against the West Indies, he was named "man-of-the-match" for taking four wickets for 13 runs. His excellent performances earned him a spot in the World team of the tournament. Parnell also won the "golden ball" award for taking the most wickets (11) in the 2009 ICC Champions Trophy.

Personal Life

On 30 July 2011, Wayne Parnell shared that he had converted to Islam in January 2011. He said that his teammates Hashim Amla and Imran Tahir did not influence his decision. He thought about taking the name Waleed, which means 'Newborn Son', but he is still known as Wayne.

Parnell has also appeared in advertisements to support PETA, an organization that advocates for animal rights.