10 Best Facts about Jacques Kallis

A photo of Jacques Kallis by NAPARAZZI – Wikimedia commons

10 Best Facts About Jacques Kallis

Jacques Kallis was born on 16 October 1975. He is a South African cricket coach and former cricketer. Cricket is a bat-and-ball game between two teams of even eleven players. Kallis is regarded as one of the greatest cricketers of all time.

He is South Africa’s greatest batsman so far so good. Kallis is a right-handed batsman and right-arm fast-medium swing bowler. He rejoined the South African national cricket team in 2019. In 2020 he was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. In the article are ten best facts about Jacques Kallis.

1. He was named the Leading Cricketer in the World

A photo of Kallis by Kolkata Knight – Wikimedia commons

Kallis was named Leading Cricketers in the world in 2008. This was due to his splendid performance in 2008. He played 166 Test matches and had a batting average of over 55 runs. H scored five centuries in four Test matches from October to December 2007.

2. He is the Greatest of All Times (G. O. A. T)

Kalis is the G. O. A. T because he is the only cricketer in the history of the game to score more than 10, 000 runs and take over 250 wickets. He set the record in both ODI and Test matches. He also took 131 ODIcatches. Kallis scored 13 289 in his Test match career and took 292 wickets and 200 catches.

3. He was declared Player of the Tournament in the 1998 ICC games

The 1998 ICC Champions trophy was a Day International cricket tournament held in Bangladesh. South Africa won the trophy with Kallis as the Player of the Tournament in the Knockout Trophy. He finished as the second-highest run-scorer and was the leading wicket-taker. He was the man of the match in both the semi-final and final.

4. He was named one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 2013

A photo of Jacques Kallis by Kolkata Knight Riders – Wikimedia commons

Wisden Cricketers of the Year are cricketers selected for the honour by the annual publication Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack. The reason why he was best in 2013 is that he became the fourth player and the first South African to score 13000 Test runs on the opening day of the first Test against New Zealand.

He retired from Test and first-class cricket after playing in the second test against India at Durban in December 2013. He scored his 45th Test hundred in this match, making him one of the few batsmen to score a century in his final Test.

5. He started playing cricket while in Highschool

He attended and played for Wynberg Boys High School. Currently, he sponsors two boys from the institution in his foundation. He was honored by Wynberg in 2009 after naming their cricket oval after him.

6. He is one of only four best players in Test History

A photo of Sir Donald Bradman by Sam Hood – Wikimedia commons

Other players in Test history are Sir Donald Bradman, Mohammad Yousuf, and Gautam Gambhir. Like the other three, Kallis also made a century of five consecutive matches. He achieved this great success in his cricket career in the 200/04 season.

7. After retiring Kallis started coaching

A group photo of South Africa Cricket team at the Oval by PaddyBriggs – Wikimedia commons

Kallis started his coaching career as head coach of Kolkata Knight Riders in October 2015. This was after head coach Trevor Bayliss resigned to take over as head coach of the England cricket team. He was also battling consultant of KKR for the 2015 Indin Premier League season.

In December 2019, he was appointed as batting consultant for the South African national cricket team. In 2020 he became the battling contestant for England national cricket team.

8. He was the best in orthodox battling technique

A photo of Kallis by Kolkata Knight Riders – Wikimedia commons

When Kallis’ playing style and comparison were made, he earned high praise for his orthodox battling technique. Michael Vaughan, a former England batsman wrote in an article for the Telegraph in July 2012 that Kallis as a batsman was the best player in the world.

Michael Vaughan added in detail by saying that Kalis was not Brian Lara or Ricky Ponting in terms of aggression or flair but was solid rock and had every shot in the book. Journalist Gideon Haigh wrote in The Australian that Kallis and Sir Garfield Soberswere are almost inseparable when compared.

9. Kallis shared a close relationship with his father

Kallis’ father is called Henry. Many times Kallis credited his father as his primary influence. When his father was diagnosed with terminal cancer, Kallis took a break from cricket to spend time with his Dad. He said that for him cricket was just a game when compared to death.

Kallis missed the first couple of Tests in England that year so that he could with his father who had only a few months to live. He once said that the break from cricket gave him a chance to say thanks and goodbye to his dying father then.

10. He founded Jacques Kallis Scholarship Foundation

A photo of Jacques Kallis by Kolkatta Knight Riders – Wikimedia commons

The scholarship foundation was started during Kalli’s benefit year to combine the academic and life skills programs. Please note that the mentoring and funding support from Jacques Kallis, was for the existing school structures, and talented youngsters to reach their full backing and academic potential.

The Foundation currently sponsors 2 boys from Wynberg Boys, 2 boys from Pretoria High, 2 boys from MaritzburgCollege, and 2 boys from Selborne College. Kallis participates in annual fundraising events for his foundation.

Jacques Kallis has gained an international reputation in his game. He is also lucky to have a family that supports him to set a legacy. His father for example was his primary influence in cricket, and his sister Janine Kallis 5 years younger cheered for him in the Indian Premier League of 2009. Kallis has left a legacy in cricket as a player.