17 Facts about Lendl Simmons – The Blazing Opener from Caribbean

Lendl Simmons is one of the most promising openers that the West Indies cricket has produced in the modern times. He has a blend of unorthodox innovation to go with his traditional cuts and pulls, that make him a good all-round cricketer suitable for all formats. Simmons, who has not been as consistent as he would like to be for the National side, has been a phenomenal player in T20s in various leagues across the globe. While you might think you already know a lot about him, here are some interesting facts about Lendl Simmons – The Blazing Opener from the Caribbean:

1. Early Life:

Lendl Simmons was born on January 25, 1985 at Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago. Simmons had cricket in his blood. His uncle Phil Simmons is s former West Indies national player. As a young kid, Lendl Simmons often idolized his uncle and practiced.

2. The Mother Love

Lendl Simmons was brought up by his single mother. This has made him respect and adore his mother a lot. He is very close to his mother and often admits that she is the most admired person in his life.

3. Early Start to Cricket

The love for the game ensured that Lendl Simmons made an early breakthrough in the professional cricket. Such early was his entrance that he has played in two ICC U19 World Cups. A prominent junior cricketer, he played in both the 2002 Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand and the 2004 Under-19 Cricket World Cup in Bangladesh for the West Indies U-19s.

4. Playing Style

Simmons is known for his right-handed opening batting. Simmons is an elegant stroke maker who can hit the long ball if needed. He is innovative in the shortest form of the game. He is an all-round cricketer, who bowls medium pace, occasionally keeps the wicket and also is an extremely agile fielder.

5. First Class Debut

He made his first-class debut in the 2001-02 season in the West Indian domestic circuit for Trinidad and Tobago. Since then, he has struck 3 double centuries in First Class cricket with a best of 282.

6. Success with the West Indies A side

Lendl Simmons was a huge success for the West Indies A team. He has his top score of 282 against the visiting England team in 2009. His huge success in the A team gave him his Test Cap.

7. International Debut

Simmons had a horrid start to his international career. His ODI debut was against Pakistan at Islamabad in 2006. He was dismissed for a duck on the 2^nd ball. His Test debut came against England in 2009. He batted at number 5 in the first innings to score 24 and was promoted to opening slot in the second innings where he failed again scoring just 8.

8. ODI centuries

Simmons has two ODI tons to his name. He scored his maiden century in ODIs by scoring 122 against Bangladesh at Dhaka. His second century came in 2015 Cricket World Cup against Ireland in Nelson, New Zealand. Ireland upset the West Indies by winning that match by 4 wickets.

9. One Man Show against Zimbabwe

Simmons had an extraordinary T20 series against a touring Zimbabwe in 2012. Chasing a modest 131 in the first of the two T20s, he scored a 49 ball 63 to guide his side to a victory with 23 balls to spare. In the second game, he scored another 41 runs which was a key to his side’s 158. West Indies won the series 2-0 and Simmons was awarded the Man of the Series.

10. Drugs in Bat?

In 2014, Simmons was caught by US customs officials in the USA between games for Guyana Amazon Warriors in the CPL when his bat attracted the attention of US customs officials, who apparently thought that it was being used to smuggle illegal drugs. As a consequence, they drilled several holes into the bat.

11. Team he plays for:

Simmons is a globetrotter when it comes to cricket. He has played for various teams and franchises in different conditions. The teams that he has represented so far are: West Indies, Brisbane Heat, Guyana Amazon Warriors, Mumbai T20, Trinidad & Tobago, Chittagong Kings, West Indies A. He is now set to represent Karachi Kings in the inaugural Pakistan Super League.

12. A Regular for the Mumbai Indians

The two-time IPL champions, Mumbai Indians, have always struggled to find a solution to their opening woes. Lendl Simmons replaced Jalaj Saxena during IPL 2014 and soon went on to score his maiden IPL ton for the Mumbai Franchise. He opened the batting with Indian Parthiv Patel during the 2015 season due to injury of Aaron Finch, where they became the most dangerous opening pair of the IPL 8 with an average over 50. Simmons played a major role in the team guided to the IPL 8 win by Mumbai Indians.

13. Huge Success at CPL 2014

Lendl Simmons emerged as the Player of the Tournament in the Caribbean Premier League in 2014. He piled up 446 runs in 11 matches with a top score of 97 for the Guyana Amazon Warriors. He was awarded a piece of land in St. Kitts worth over four millions US dollars as Man of the Series prize.

14. Prolific T20 Cricketer

Simmons has a prolific record as a T20 cricketer. Having played the Big Bash League and the Indian Premier League, he has amassed lot of runs in the shortest format of the game. He has played 159 T20s and scored 4433 runs with a best of 100*. His century came for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL.

15. Conflict with the WICB

As per the reports, Simmons was paid over one million US dollars in damages from the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) after a run-in with the board for being “rendered jobless” despite having a central contract with the cricket board.

16. The Love for Brands

Lendl Simmons has a penchant for big brands. His most loved brand, as he once admitted, is the Armani Exchange jerseys. Well, with the kind of money he mints from the cash-rich leagues, the tastes are bound to be high.

17. Personal Life: A proud Father

Lendl Simmons is a happily married man with a daughter named Kaylyn. Simmons often calls her the dearest in his life and often recalls her birth as the happiest moment of his life. He is a proud father who absolutely proud of his fatherhood and the love for his daughter.