13 Facts about Gary Ballance - The promising young Englishman

Gary Ballance is an indispensable Test player for England at present. Basically a Test specialist, he had a very challenging start to his Test career, making his debut against an ‘invincible-looking’ Australia in the Ashes of 2013 which was a debacle for England. But, he has grown significantly as a player and his reputation blossomed. After a dismal debut, he soon found his rhythm and hit centuries against Sri Lanka and India to cement his place in the Test squad. Thus, becoming the backbone of English middle order.

The baby-faced left hander’s playing style is not very flamboyant and has a very simple approach to batting. He plays with a less prominent back-foot technique. However, he can read the game and adapt to the situation quickly. Ballance’s Test career is still young and it would be interesting to see how he shapes up his future with the English cricket team.

1. Birth:

Gary Ballance was born on 22^nd November 1989.

2. Roots:

Ballance was born in Zimbabwe and that makes him an English cricketer with a Zimbabwean origin. Later in his teens he shifted to England to play county cricket.

3. Growing years:

His parents Gail and Simon were tobacco farmers. Theirs was a typical wealthy white Zimbabwean family. He grew up in a tobacco farm in near Mutare, on the Mozambique border in Harare, Zimbabwe before moving to England.

4. Sports fanatic:

As a kid, he played tennis, rugby and some age group hockey for Zimbabwe. But, by the age of 13, he decided that he wanted to be a professional cricketer.

5. English connection:

Surprisingly, Gary Ballance has British roots through his grandparents. One of them had flown for the RAF during World War II.

6. Cricketing relations:

Ballance is related to former Zimbabwean Test cricketer David Houghton through his mother, who is a cousin of David’s wife. He is also distantly related to John Timms, who played for Northamptonshire between 1925 and 1949.

7. Early playing career:

At the age of 16, Gary Ballance represented Zimbabwe in the 2006 Under-19 World Cup. He made five appearances for them and also was a star in the match where Zimbabwe U-19 defeated England U-19. He made a half-century and took three wickets in the match.

8. Promising teenager:

Ballance was prolific with the bat in the tournament which earned him the chance to sign for the Derbyshire in 2006. He played his first limited overs match two weeks later, having performed in the Derbyshire Second XI.

9. England debut:

He made his ODI debut for England in 2013 against Ireland at Dublin. Unfortunately, he was out for a duck in that match. In Tests, he debuted in the fifth Test of the 2013 Ashes series against arch-rivals Australia at Sydney.

10. Records:

On April 25, 2015, Ballance became the third fastest England batsman to score 1,000 Test runs.

11. Achievements:

Ballance was named a Cricketer of the Year in the 2015 edition of the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack.

12. Domestic teams:

He played for Derbyshire before joining Yorkshire in 2008. He also plays for the Zimbabwean club, Mid West Rhinos.

13. Career so far:

Gary Ballance has played 15 Tests for England and has scored 1194 runs at an average of 47.76. He has 4 centuries and 6 half-centuries to his name. The southpaw has been a less effective player in the ODI format. He has represented England 16 times and has scored just 297 runs.