Adam Paul Rouse (born 30 June 1992) is a

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

an-born English former professional

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

er. Rouse played as a right-handed

batsman In cricket, batting is the act or skill of hitting the cricket ball, ball with a cricket bat, bat to score runs (cricket), runs and prevent the dismissal (cricket), loss of one's wicket. Any player who is currently batting is, since Septembe ...

who fielded as a

wicket-keeper In cricket, the wicket-keeper is the Cricket player, player on the fielding (cricket), fielding side who stands behind the wicket, ready to stop Delivery (cricket), deliveries that pass the batsman, and take a Caught, catch, Stumped, stump the ...

, although he was considered versatile enough to play solely as a specialist batsman. Rouse played for England at under-19 level and made his first-class debut in 2013 for

Hampshire County Cricket Club Hampshire County Cricket Club is one of eighteen first-class cricket, first-class county cricket, county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the Historic counties of England, historic county of Hamp ...

. He played for

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

in 2014 before joining

Kent County Cricket Club Kent County Cricket Club is one of the eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Kent. A club representing the county was first founded in 1842 but Ken ...

ahead of the 2016 season. He retired from professional cricket at the start of the 2020 season.

Early life and youth career

Born in the

an capital

Harare Harare ( ), formerly Salisbury, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Zimbabwe. The city proper has an area of , a population of 1,849,600 as of the 2022 Zimbabwe census, 2022 census and an estimated 2,487,209 people in its metrop ...

, Rouse moved to England with his family when he was ten years old, living at Farleigh Wallop near

Basingstoke Basingstoke ( ) is a town in Hampshire, situated in south-central England across a valley at the source of the River Loddon on the western edge of the North Downs. It is the largest settlement in Hampshire without city status in the United King ...

.Rouse on the rise as England come calling
''

Basingstoke Gazette The ''Basingstoke Gazette'' is a local newspaper for Basingstoke, Hampshire, England. The newspaper is published once a week, on a Thursday. A Wednesday edition branded as the ''Basingstoke Extra'', distributed free of charge, ceased to be pub ...

'', 2010-08-07. Retrieved 2016-01-24. Two years later, he became the youngest person to make a

century A century is a period of 100 years or 10 decades. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages. The word ''century'' comes from the Latin ''centum'', meaning ''one hundred''. ''Century'' is sometimes abbreviated as c. ...

in an adult league match at the age of twelve. Impressing during his teens in club cricket, Rouse was talent spotted by

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

, entering the county's academy and first playing for their second XI in 2008.Basingstoke cricketer Adam Rouse makes Hampshire debut
''

'', 2013-07-15. Retrieved 2016-01-24. In 2010, Rouse played two Youth

Test matches Test match in some sports refers to a sporting contest between national representative teams and may refer to: * Test cricket * Indoor cricket, Test match (indoor cricket) * Test match (rugby union) * Test match (rugby league) * Test match (associa ...

and five Youth

One Day International One Day International (ODI) is a format of cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of fifty overs, with the game lasting up to 7 hours. The World Cup, generally held every four yea ...

s for the England Under-19 side against Sri Lanka Under-19s. In 2011 he became the youngest English substitute fielder to take a catch during a Test match.Rouse makes a historic catch
''

'', 2011-06-11. Retrieved 2016-01-24. Later in the year Rouse had his development contract renewed.Hampshire give contracts to Terry, Rouse and Ravenscroft

CricInfo ESPNcricinfo (formerly known as Cricinfo or CricInfo) is a Sports journalism, sports news website exclusively for the game of cricket. The site features news, articles, live coverage of cricket matches (including Liveblogging, liveblogs and sco ...

, 2011-11-11. Retrieved 2013-07-16. He captained the Hampshire Second XI for the majority of the 2012 season.

Cricket career

Rouse made his

First Class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is of three or more days scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officially adju ...

debut for

in 2013 against

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

,'Keeper-batsman Rouse happy to have made his mark' in ''Kent v Derbyshire'',

, 2016-06-26. also appearing once for the county in a one-day game against the touring Bangladesh A team. He was released by the club at the end of the 2013 season,Riazuddin: I have no regrets
''

Southern Daily Echo The ''Southern Daily Echo'', more commonly known as the ''Daily Echo'' or simply ''The Echo'', is a regional tabloid newspaper based in Southampton, covering the county of Hampshire in the United Kingdom. The newspaper is owned by Newsquest, on ...

'', 2013-10-02. Retrieved 2016-01-24 joining

for a two-month spell in 2014.Matchwinner Adam Rouse puts himself in the shop window
'' Wilts & Gloucestershire Standard'', 2014-07-02. Retrieved 2016-01-24.Gloucestershire cricket: Adam Rouse aims to make most of his chance
''

Western Daily Press The ''Western Daily Press'' is a regional newspaper covering parts of South West England, mainly Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Somerset as well as the metropolitan areas of Bath and North East Somerset and the Bristol area. It is published Mon ...

'', 2014-07-04. Retrieved 2016-01-24. Rouse played in 13 matches for Gloucestershire in all domestic competitions before being released when first choice wicket keeper Gareth Roderick returned from injury.Gloucestershire sign Adam Rouse as wicketkeeper cover
BBC Sport website, 2014-06-24. Retrieved 2016-01-23.
, ''

Gloucestershire Echo ''Gloucestershire Echo'' is a local weekly newspaper based in Gloucester, England. Published every Thursday, it covers the areas of Bishops Cleeve, Cheltenham, Moreton-in-Marsh, Northleach, Stow-on-the-Wold and Tewkesbury. The newspaper is head ...

'', 2014-08-01. Retrieved 2016-01-23. He also featured for

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

and

's second eleven teams during the season.Adam Rouse determined to take his shock chance at Gloucestershire
''

Bristol Post The ''Bristol Post'' is a city/regional five-day-a-week (formerly appearing six days per week) newspaper covering news in the city of Bristol, including stories from the whole of Greater Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire. It was ...

'', 2014-06-26. Retrieved 2016-01-23. Following his release by Gloucestershire, Rouse qualified as a

personal trainer A personal trainer is an individual who creates and delivers safe and effective exercise programs for healthy individuals and groups, or those with medical clearance to exercise. They motivate clients by collaborating to set goals, providing m ...

, a move he later suggested had allowed him to play cricket "with a bit more freedom" and provided a "plan-B".Adam Rouse: Personal training qualification has allowed me to play with more freedom

BBC Sport BBC Sport is the sports division of the BBC, providing national sports coverage for BBC BBC Television, television, BBC Radio, radio and BBC Online, online. The BBC holds the television and radio UK broadcasting rights to several sports, broadc ...

, 2017-04-25. Retrieved 2017-04-26. At the beginning of the 2015 season he acted as temporary wicket keeper cover for Kent but was not signed to a longer-term contract.Wicketkeeper Adam Rouse joins Kent on trial
, Kent County Cricket Club, 2015-04-11. Retrieved 2016-01-23.Kent sign wicketkeeper-batsman Adam Rouse
, ''Kent News'', 2016-01-18. Retrieved 2016-01-23.
''Canterbury Times'', 2016-01-19. Retrieved 2016-01-23. In January 2016, following

Ryan Davies Ryan Davies (22 January 1937 – 22 April 1977) was a Welsh comedian, actor, musician, singer, and songwriter. Though his career lasted just 11 years, he became widely known in Wales through his work with Ronnie Williams as the comedic double ...

' departure to

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

, Rouse signed a two-year permanent contract with Kent.Adam Rouse: Kent agree deal with wicketkeeper-batsman
BBC Sport website, 2016-01-18. Retrieved 2016-01-23. He made his Kent first-class debut in a university match in April 2016, replacing

Sam Billings Samuel William Billings (born 15 June 1991) is an English professional cricketer. Billings is a right-handed batsman who fields as a wicket-keeper. He was born at Pembury in Kent and has played for Kent County Cricket Club sides since he was ei ...

who was playing in the

2016 Indian Premier League The 2016 Indian Premier League season (also known as IPL 9, and branded as Vivo IPL 2016 for sponsorship reasons) was the ninth season of the Indian Premier League, a professional Twenty20 cricket league established by the Board of Control for ...

.Crouch J (2016
Rouse wants to give coaches “a difficult decision”
''Kent Sports news'', 2016-04-08. Retrieved 2016-04-26.
''Canterbury Times'', 2016-04-16. Retrieved 2016-04-26. Rouse became Kent's regular wicket-keeper in Billings absence at the start of the 2016 season and by the end of May was leading the first-class wicket-keeping dismissals with 26 victims. Once Billings returned to Kent Rouse became the reserve 'keeper, although he continued to play when Billings was injuredPennell M (2016
Adam Rouse happy with life in Kent as Sam Billings understudy
, ''Kent News'', 2016-06-23. Retrieved 2017-02-12. or on

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

duty, making eight appearances for Kent during the season. His season was cut short following two finger dislocations during Kent's

County Championship The County Championship, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Rothesay County Championship, is the only domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales. Established in 1890, it is organised by the England and Wales Cri ...

match against

Glamorgan Glamorgan (), or sometimes Glamorganshire ( or ), was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It is located in the South Wales, south of Wales. Originally an ea ...

towards the end of June, a game in which Rouse made his maiden first-class half century.Hoad A (2016) Rouse plays through pain barrier to hit first 50, ''Kentish Express'', 2016-06-30. A fracture resulting from the injuries required surgery which side-lined Rouse for ten weeks and he did not play for the first team for the remainder of the 2016 season.Jackson answers Kent's emergency call

, 2016-06-22. Retrieved 2017-02-12. Rouse, Haggett and Riley continue comeback from injury
,

, 2016-08-25. Retrieved 2017-02-12. With Billings once again on England duty and playing in the

2017 Pakistan Super League The 2017 Pakistan Super League (also known as PSL 2 or, for sponsorship reasons, HBL PSL 2017), was the second season of the Pakistan Super League, a franchise Twenty20 cricket league established by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) in 2016. On ...

, Rouse began Kent's 2017 season as the first-choice wicket-keeper, playing in all of the county's matches in the

2016–17 Regional Super50 The 2016–17 Regional Super50 was the 43rd edition of the Regional Super50, the domestic limited-overs cricket competition for the countries of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB). The tournament was held in Antigua and Barbuda. Ten teams pa ...

tournament in the West Indies and topping the team's batting averages in the competition.Hoad A (2017
Kent wicketkeeper Adam Rouse handed contract extension
''

Kent Online KM Media Group is a multimedia company in the county of Kent, England which originated as the publisher of the Kent Messenger. The Group now produces local newspapers, radio stations, TV and websites throughout the county. Yattendon Group#Iliff ...

'', 2017-04-26. Retrieved 2017-04-26. He scored his maiden

List A List A cricket is a classification of the Limited overs cricket, limited-overs (one-day) form of the sport of cricket, with games lasting up to eight hours. List A cricket includes One Day International (ODI) matches and various domestic competit ...

half-century in the team's final match of the tournament playing as a specialist batsman.Dickson and Rouse stand sees Kent to FGS Plant Tour win

, 2017-02-12. Retrieved 2017-02-12. Rouse continued to keep wicket at the start of the 2017 County Championship season, taking 13 catches and making a new first-class highest score of 95

not out In cricket, a batsman is not out if they come out to bat in an innings and have not been dismissed by the end of an innings. The batsman is also ''not out'' while their innings is still in progress. Occurrence At least one batter is not out at ...

in the first block of matches before signing a new contract with Kent in late April.Adam Rouse: Kent wicketkeeper signs contract extension

, 2016-04-26. Retrieved 2017-04-26. He played in Billings' absences for Kent throughout 2017 and again in 2018, playing occasionally as wicket-keeper in games Billings also played in, and made one first-class appearance for Surrey in July 2018 in a tour match against West Indies A with Surrey suffering from a shortage of available wicket-keepers.Surrey team named to face West Indies A
,

Surrey County Cricket Club Surrey County Cricket Club (Surrey CCC) is a first-class club in county cricket, one of eighteen in the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Surrey, including areas that now form South Londo ...

, 2018-07-15. Retrieved 2018-07-16.Kent County Cricket Club [kentcricket
Best of luck to @Rousie20 who is keeping wicket for oldest rivals @surreycricket this week against West Indies A at The Oval. He's been drafted in for one match only as Surrey are without 2 'keepers on England Lions duty and another has a niggle
(Tweet), via Twitter, 2018-07-16. Retrieved 2018-07-16.

Retirement

Rouse retired from professional cricket in July 2020, at the start of the 2020 season which had been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, having made 84 senior appearances in his career. In 2021, supported by the Professional Cricketers Association, he opened a gym in central London with his wife, building on his personal training qualifications.Rouse trained up for second career

, 2021-11-01. Retrieved 2021-11-01.

References

External list

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rouse, Adam 1992 births Living people Cricketers from Harare Zimbabwean emigrants to the United Kingdom People educated at Peter Symonds College English cricketers Hampshire cricketers Gloucestershire cricketers Kent cricketers Surrey cricketers People from Farleigh Wallop Wicket-keepers Cricketers from Hampshire