Charl Willoughby
Encyclopedia
Charl Myles Willoughby is a South African cricket
er who played two Tests
and three ODIs for South Africa between 2000 and 2003. He played for Boland and Western Province before spending two seasons with the Cape Cobras
. He has also played English county cricket
, and after a season with Leicestershire
in 2005, and played for Somerset
from 2006 to 2011. He currently plays for Essex
as of November 2011. He is a left-arm fast-medium
pace bowler and a left-handed batsman. He was educated at Wynberg Boys High School.
. Opening the Boland bowling, he finished the match with 1/44, claiming future South Africa national team head coach Mickey Arthur
as his first wicket. His first-class
debut came just under two weeks later, against Transvaal
. Willoughby claimed three wickets in the first-innings, and two more in the second as the match was drawn. He finished his first season with 15 first-class wickets, at a bowling average
of 35.73. In the 1998–99 season, a string of good performances saw Willoughby selected to play for South Africa A
against the touring West Indians. Although his first match in international colours passed without him standing-out, in the following match for Boland, also against the West Indians, Willoughby claimed his maiden five-wicket haul, finishing with figures of 5/60, including the wicket of Brian Lara
. By the end of the season, he had claimed 36 first-class wickets, almost double the number he had taken previous to that summer. He made his international debut late in the following 1999–2000 season, appearing in a Coca-Cola Sharjah Cup match against Pakistan. Opening the bowling, Willoughby claimed two wickets in a 65 run defeat.
After spending the winter playing club cricket in England, Willoughby was selected to tour the West Indies with South Africa A, where he played two matches against Barbados
and four against West Indies A
. He joined Western Province for the 2000–01 season, where he remained until the end of the 2004–05 season, when he joined Cape Cobras.
Three wickets for South Africa A in each of the one-day matches against 'The Rest' in February 2003 led to his inclusion in the One Day International (ODI) squad for the 2003 TVS Cup in Bangladesh
. He played twice in the tournament without taking a wicket, and hasn't appeared for South Africa in ODIs since. His Test
debut came during the same tour, during the first Test against Bangladesh in April 2003. He claimed a solitary wicket, that of Mohammad Ashraful
during the match. He retained his place in the Test squad for the tour of England
, playing in three tour matches and the first Test at Edgbaston
. In a drawn match, he bowled 20 overs in the first-innings without taking a wicket, and wasn't asked by captain Graeme Smith
to bowl in the second.
in 2005
and for Somerset
from 2006
. In 2006 he was the leading wicket taker for Somerset in first-class cricket as he took 66 wickets at an average of just over 25 in a season which included career bests of 47 batting against Worcestershire
and 7/44 against Gloucestershire
. He also performed consistently in 2007
, a season in which Somerset achieved promotion to the first division of the County Championship
as well as the Natwest Pro40. It was announced in November 2011 that Willoughby has joined Essex
on a two year deal.
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er who played two Tests
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
and three ODIs for South Africa between 2000 and 2003. He played for Boland and Western Province before spending two seasons with the Cape Cobras
Cape Cobras
The Nashua Mobile Cape Cobras often shortened to Cape Cobras or Cobras is the name used since the 2005–06 season by the combined Western Province and Boland first class cricket teams in South African domestic cricket. The joint Western Province and Boland team was named Western Province Boland for...
. He has also played English county cricket
County cricket
County cricket is the highest level of domestic cricket in England and Wales. For the 2010 season, see 2010 English cricket season.-First-class counties:...
, and after a season with Leicestershire
Leicestershire County Cricket Club
Leicestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Leicestershire. It has also been representative of the county of Rutland....
in 2005, and played for Somerset
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Somerset...
from 2006 to 2011. He currently plays for Essex
Essex County Cricket Club
Essex County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Essex. Its limited overs team is called the Essex Eagles, their team colours this season are blue.The club plays most of its home games...
as of November 2011. He is a left-arm fast-medium
Fast bowling
Fast bowling, sometimes known as pace bowling, is one of the two main approaches to bowling in the sport of cricket. The other is spin bowling...
pace bowler and a left-handed batsman. He was educated at Wynberg Boys High School.
South Africa
Willoughby made his one-day debut for Boland in October 1994 against Orange Free StateOrange Free State cricket team
The Free State cricket team is the first-class cricket team representing the province of Free State in South Africa....
. Opening the Boland bowling, he finished the match with 1/44, claiming future South Africa national team head coach Mickey Arthur
Mickey Arthur
John Michael "Mickey" Arthur is a South African cricketer who played South African domestic cricket from 1986 to 2001. He coached the South African national team from 2005 to 2010, and has been recently appointed coach of the Australia national cricket team.-Biography:Arthur was born in...
as his first wicket. His first-class
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
debut came just under two weeks later, against Transvaal
Transvaal cricket team
Gauteng cricket team is the first-class cricket team of the province of Gauteng in South Africa....
. Willoughby claimed three wickets in the first-innings, and two more in the second as the match was drawn. He finished his first season with 15 first-class wickets, at a bowling average
Bowling average
Bowling average is a statistic measuring the performance of bowlers in the sport of cricket.A bowler's bowling average is defined as the total number of runs conceded by the bowlers divided by the number of wickets taken by the bowler, so the lower the average the better. It is similar to earned...
of 35.73. In the 1998–99 season, a string of good performances saw Willoughby selected to play for South Africa A
South Africa A cricket team
The South Africa A cricket team is a national cricket team representing South Africa. It is the 'second-tier' of international South African cricket, below the full South Africa national cricket team. Matches played by South Africa A are not considered to be Test matches or One Day...
against the touring West Indians. Although his first match in international colours passed without him standing-out, in the following match for Boland, also against the West Indians, Willoughby claimed his maiden five-wicket haul, finishing with figures of 5/60, including the wicket of Brian Lara
Brian Lara
Brian Charles Lara, TC, OCC, AM is a former West Indian international cricket player. Lara is generally regarded as one of the greatest batsmen of all time...
. By the end of the season, he had claimed 36 first-class wickets, almost double the number he had taken previous to that summer. He made his international debut late in the following 1999–2000 season, appearing in a Coca-Cola Sharjah Cup match against Pakistan. Opening the bowling, Willoughby claimed two wickets in a 65 run defeat.
After spending the winter playing club cricket in England, Willoughby was selected to tour the West Indies with South Africa A, where he played two matches against Barbados
Barbados national cricket team
The Barbadian cricket team is the representative first class cricket team of Barbados.It does not take part in any international competitions , but rather in inter-regional competitions in the Caribbean, such as the Regional Four Day Competition and the WICB Cup, and the best players may be...
and four against West Indies A
West Indies A cricket team
The West Indies A cricket team is a cricket team representing a sporting confederation of the Caribbean countries: Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago...
. He joined Western Province for the 2000–01 season, where he remained until the end of the 2004–05 season, when he joined Cape Cobras.
Three wickets for South Africa A in each of the one-day matches against 'The Rest' in February 2003 led to his inclusion in the One Day International (ODI) squad for the 2003 TVS Cup in Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
. He played twice in the tournament without taking a wicket, and hasn't appeared for South Africa in ODIs since. His Test
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
debut came during the same tour, during the first Test against Bangladesh in April 2003. He claimed a solitary wicket, that of Mohammad Ashraful
Mohammad Ashraful
Mohammad Ashraful is a Bangladeshi international cricket player and has represented the Bangladesh national cricket team. A top-order batsman with a penchant for flashy strokeplay, he has also been selected to represent ACC Asia XI ODI side...
during the match. He retained his place in the Test squad for the tour of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, playing in three tour matches and the first Test at Edgbaston
Edgbaston Cricket Ground
Edgbaston Cricket Ground, also known as the County Ground or Edgbaston Stadium, is a cricket ground in the Edgbaston area of Birmingham, England...
. In a drawn match, he bowled 20 overs in the first-innings without taking a wicket, and wasn't asked by captain Graeme Smith
Graeme Smith
Graeme Craig Smith is a South African cricketer and captain of the South African cricket team Test Match side, having succeeded Shaun Pollock after the 2003 Cricket World Cup...
to bowl in the second.
England
He has also played for LeicestershireLeicestershire County Cricket Club
Leicestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Leicestershire. It has also been representative of the county of Rutland....
in 2005
2005 English cricket season
Before the beginning of the 2005 English cricket season began, a resurgent English cricket team had won four Test series in a row, going unbeaten through the 2004 calendar year. The start of the international season saw England defeat Bangladesh 2–0 in their two-match series, winning both Tests by...
and for Somerset
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Somerset...
from 2006
2006 English cricket season
The 2006 English cricket season includes home international series for England against Sri Lanka and Pakistan. England are coming off a winter with more Test losses than wins, for the first time since 2002-03, but still attained their best series result in India since 1985...
. In 2006 he was the leading wicket taker for Somerset in first-class cricket as he took 66 wickets at an average of just over 25 in a season which included career bests of 47 batting against Worcestershire
Worcestershire County Cricket Club
Worcestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Worcestershire...
and 7/44 against Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Gloucestershire. Its limited overs team is called the Gloucestershire Gladiators....
. He also performed consistently in 2007
2007 English cricket season
The 2007 English cricket season began on Saturday 14 April 2007 with the match between MCC and the 2006 county champions Sussex at Lord's.-Roll of honour:Test series*England v West Indies: 4 Tests - England won 3–0....
, a season in which Somerset achieved promotion to the first division of the County Championship
County Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
as well as the Natwest Pro40. It was announced in November 2011 that Willoughby has joined Essex
Essex County Cricket Club
Essex County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Essex. Its limited overs team is called the Essex Eagles, their team colours this season are blue.The club plays most of its home games...
on a two year deal.