Thomas Kelly (cricketer, born 2000)

Thomas Kelly (born 14 December 2000) is an Australian cricketer.[1] He made his List A debut for South Australia against Queensland on 28 November 2021 during the 2021–22 Marsh One-Day Cup.[2] He is the twin brother of Australian cricketer Corey Kelly.[3] He made his Twenty20 debut on 11 December 2021, for the Adelaide Strikers in the 2021–22 Big Bash League season.[4]

For other people named Thomas Kelly, see Thomas Kelly (disambiguation).

Thomas Kelly
Personal information
Born (2000-12-14) 14 December 2000
Adelaide, South Australia
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm off break
RoleMiddle-order batter
RelationsCorey Kelly (twin brother)
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
2021/22–South Australia (squad no. 31)
2021/22–Adelaide Strikers (squad no. 31)
Career statistics
Competition FC LA T20
Matches 4 5 27
Runs scored 147 113 318
Batting average 21.00 28.25 18.70
100s/50s 0/0 0/1 0/0
Top score 39 53* 43
Catches/stumpings 4/- -/- 10/–
Source: ESPNCricinfo, 17 February 2023

Personal life

Thomas Kelly was born on 14 December 2000 in the southern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia, to Matthew Kelly, a member of the original Adelaide Crows squad for the Australian Football League,[5] and Tina.[6] He is the identical twin brother of fellow cricketer Corey Kelly, who was born two minutes earlier; they have a younger sister, Lucy.[6] Kelly grew up in a sports-focused family influenced by his father's AFL career. The twins played over 100 games of Australian rules football with Mitcham Hawks Football Club and Norwood Football Club before shifting their focus to cricket, which the elder Kelly had also played.[5]

Career

The Kelly brothers began playing cricket at the school level. Before the age of fifteen, Corey was predominantly a batter and Thomas predominantly a bowler; they switched roles after discovering each had a greater affinity for the opposite position.[5] Thomas Kelly narrowly missed out on being selected to appear on Australia's team for the 2020 Under-19 Cricket World Cup in South Africa, while his brother was selected to play for the team.[5][7] Kelly spent his early career as a player for the Sturt Cricket Club, which he described in 2021 as being "in an awesome spot at the moment".[8]

At the age of 20, the Kelly brothers were signed to the West End Redbacks, South Australia's professional first class cricket team. They became the first twins to play cricket together for South Australia.[9] They played their debut game for the Redbacks in November 2021.[10] Though South Australia lost the game, Kelly described his debut as "unbelievable" and as an experience he was "very fortunate" to have had.[8] Corey and Thomas Kelly are the first identical twins to play first class cricket on the same team in Australia since Kate and Alex Blackwell.[9]

He made his first-class debut on 23 March 2022, for South Australia in the 2021–22 Sheffield Shield season.[11]

References
  1. "Thomas Kelly". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  2. "10th Match, Adelaide, Nov 28 2021, The Marsh Cup". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  3. "Identical twins set to play for South Australia". cricket.com.au. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  4. "9th Match (N), Sydney, Dec 11 2021, Big Bash League". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  5. Ramsay, Andrew (16 September 2020). "The true history of South Australia's Kelly gang". Cricket.com.au. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  6. Baker, Rebecca (9 May 2021). "Mum's love drives SA Kelly twins: At home with Redbacks' Thomas and Corey Kelly on Mother's Day". The Advertiser. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  7. Morris, Grey (23 February 2021). "Southern Districts cricketer Corey Kelly is set to expand his playing resume on the first class arena". NT News. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  8. Renfrey, Daniel (1 December 2021). "Sturt twins Corey and Thomas Kelly make history in SA Redbacks performance". The Advertiser. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  9. Bailey, Scott (27 November 2021). "Redbacks roll out identical cricket twins". 7 News. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  10. Ramsey, Andrew (28 November 2021). "Concussed Weatherald out of Marsh Cup clash". Cricket.com.au. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  11. "22nd Match, Adelaide, Mar 23 - 26 2022, Sheffield Shield". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
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