11 Facts about Vernon Philander: The gentle troublemaker

The perfect seam, the late movement, and the unexpected lift; these are the qualities that define Vernon Philander as a bowler. He bowls at a gentle pace and isn’t scary at all. However, the lack of ‘extreme pace’ factor which his compatriots normally use to get better of the opposition doesn’t cut down his threat at all. Along with the masterful duo of Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel, Philander forms the most formidable pace trio in recent past. Rightly nicknamed as ‘Pro’, Philander has truly kept the reputation alive of a country which is known to produce high-quality fast bowlers.

1.Born on:

Vernon Darryl Philander was born on June 24, 1985, in the city Bellville, Greater Cape Town, South Africa.

2. Family:

Philander with his mother, Bony Philander, a duty manager at Cape Town International Airport. His grandparents, Lea and Mitchell, and his younger brothers, Tyron, 23, Brandon, 21, and Darryl, 16.

3. Early life & Education:

Philander attended Webner Street Primary School and Ravensmead Secondary School.

4. Learns to bat with a tomato crate:

“When he was a little boy of about two, he played here in the street with a bat made from a tomato crate. Today, he has many very expensive bats in his room,” said his mother.

5. International debut:

Philander made his ODI debut on his 22nd birthday, against Ireland at Belfast in 2007. It was a memorable one for his as he returned with a fabulous figure of took 4 for 12 in South Africa’s win.

6. Test debut:

59 wickets the 2010 season at a ridiculous average of 12.96 prompted SA selectors to pick him for the home series against Australia. On 9 November 2011, Philander made his Test debut and celebrated it with a Man of the Match-winning performance after taking 5–15 in Australia’s second innings, in which Australia was dismissed for 47, that country’s lowest completed test innings total since 1902. He was also Man of the Series, with 14 wickets at 13.92 and two five-wicket hauls across the two tests.

7. Another historic feat:

The following month he took five wickets in each innings in the first test of South Africa’s home series against Sri Lanka. He became the fifth player in history to take five wickets in an innings in each of his first three tests.

8. The joint second-fastest to 50 Test wickets:

Philander is the joint second-fastest bowler ever to claim 50 wickets. He shares the record with Australian Tom Richardson. The only bowler to get to the mark faster was Charles Turner who did it in 6 matches.

9. Races to the top:

In 2013, Philander meteoric rise saw him topple his countryman Dale Steyn and become the No.1 in the Test bowlers ranking. Dale Steyn, however, reclaimed after a shirt while.

10. The emerging all-rounder:

His stable batting performances in the lower order saw him claim the 3rd place in the all-rounder’s ranking as well.

11. Reaches the 100 Test wickets milestone:

On 20 December 2013, Philander took his 100th test wicket in the first test against India in Johannesburg. It took him only 19 matches to achieve this feat, the joint-sixth fastest ever.

12. Personal life:

Philander has a girlfriend of six years – Mandy Hudson – who is studying to be a chartered accountant. The couple usually evaded the media spotlight.