Jacobus Andries "Jacques" Rudolph (born 4 May 1981) is a former South African
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 who played for
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
,
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 ...
and in South Africa with
Titans
In Greek mythology, the Titans ( ; ) were the pre-Twelve Olympians, Olympian gods. According to the ''Theogony'' of Hesiod, they were the twelve children of the primordial parents Uranus (mythology), Uranus (Sky) and Gaia (Earth). The six male ...
.
He attended
Afrikaanse Hoër Seunskool
Afrikaanse Hoër Seunskool (also known as Affies), is a Public school (government funded), public Afrikaans, Afrikaans medium high school for boys situated in the suburb of Arcadia, Pretoria, Elandspoort in Pretoria in the Gauteng province of So ...
, a popular and renowned public school located in Pretoria.
International cricket
Rudolph was chosen for South Africa's Test team in 2003 having previously had his selection for the 2002 New Year's Test against Australia in
Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
overruled by cricket administrators due to the
South African practice of obeying a 'quota' of non-white players; the board overruled the selectors and installed
Justin Ontong in the team. The selectors noticed him during one of his performances in domestic cricket.
Rudolph was named the South African Cricket Annual Cricketer of the Year in 2003.

In his debut Test match against
Bangladesh
Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...
he scored 222 not out, his best first class score. It is still the highest Test debut score by a left-handed batsman and a Test opener as of 2013, when
Hamish Rutherford
Hamish Duncan Rutherford (born 27 April 1989) is a New Zealand former professional cricketer who played first-class cricket for Otago
Otago (, ; ) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the Sou ...
made 171 for New Zealand against England.
He also broke the South African third-wicket partnership record, alongside
Boeta Dippenaar
Hendrik Human Dippenaar (born 14 June 1977), known as Boeta Dippenaar, is a former South African cricket team, South African cricketer who played all formats of the game. He is also a member of List of African XI ODI cricketers, ACA African XI. ...
, reaching 429* against
Bangladesh
Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...
at
Chittagong
Chittagong ( ), officially Chattogram, (, ) (, or ) is the second-largest city in Bangladesh. Home to the Port of Chittagong, it is the busiest port in Bangladesh and the Bay of Bengal. The city is also the business capital of Bangladesh. It ...
. He saved a Test for South Africa in the Perth Test match in December 2005 after defying the Australian bowlers for more than a day to score 102* and ensure a draw. After declaring himself unavailable for selection by South Africa after agreeing to join
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
under the
Kolpak ruling
The ''Kolpak'' ruling is a European Court of Justice ruling handed down on 8 May 2003 in favour of Maroš Kolpak, a Slovak handball player. It declared that citizens of countries which have signed European Union Association Agreements have ...
he stated he did not want to represent South Africa again and hoped to possibly represent
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 ...
, qualifying by residency, after deciding to buy a house and live permanently in
Yorkshire
Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
.
Rudolph was recalled to the South African Test squad in October 2011, for the two-Test
home series against Australia.
Domestic cricket
Rudolph played for the
Nashua Titans in South Africa. He also represented the
Gestetner Diamond Eagles and
Northerns.
Although still centrally contracted, Rudolph signed a three-year deal in 2007 to play in England for
Yorkshire County Cricket Club
Yorkshire County Cricket Club is a professional Cricket club based in Yorkshire, England. The team competes in the County Championship, the top tier of English First-class cricket. Nicknamed "Vikings". Yorkshire also competes in T20 Blast, O ...
under the
Kolpak ruling
The ''Kolpak'' ruling is a European Court of Justice ruling handed down on 8 May 2003 in favour of Maroš Kolpak, a Slovak handball player. It declared that citizens of countries which have signed European Union Association Agreements have ...
. In doing so he declared himself unavailable for selection for the duration of the contract. Rudolph wore squad number 24 for Yorkshire and in October 2007 further committed himself to the county, signing a 4-year deal which would keep him at the club until 2011.
In 2008, Rudolph was awarded the Players' Player, and fans' Player of the Year awards for Yorkshire.
He was also awarded Yorkshire CCC Players' player of the year in 2010.
He left Yorkshire at the end of the 2010 season after mutual agreement to terminate his contract a year early. This was so that he and his wife could return to South Africa to be closer to family. In July 2011, following Yorkshire's run of poor form, Rudolph returned to Yorkshire CCC for the last six games of the season. In his first game back against Lancashire he scored 12 and 35 in a loss against
Lancashire CCC
Lancashire Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in English cricket. The club has held first-class status since it was founded in 1864. Lancashire's home is Old Trafford Cricket Ground, although the team also play match ...
. In his second county game against
Hampshire CCC
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 scored 99 before being caught off
Imran Tahir
Mohammad Imran Tahir (; born 27 March 1979) is a South African former international cricketer. A spin bowler who predominantly bowls googlies and a right-handed batsman, Tahir played for South Africa in all three formats of cricket.
On 15 Ju ...
.
On 27 April 2017, Rudolph completed his 10,000 runs in List-A cricket.
He made a record breaking century debut versus
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 ...
at
The Oval
The Oval, currently named for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club sinc ...
during the
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 ...
. Yorkshire had made a shaky start, but alongside promising all-rounder
Adil Rashid, Rudolph helped make 190 and in the process break a record 6th wicket partnership against Surrey for Yorkshire. The record had stood since
George Hirst
George Herbert Hirst (7 September 1871 – 10 May 1954) was a professional English cricketer who played first-class cricket for Yorkshire County Cricket Club between 1891 and 1921, with a further appearance in 1929. One of the best all-r ...
and Irving Washington posted 134 in 1902. Rudolph's fine innings ended for 122, being caught off the bowling of
Steve Magoffin
Steven James Magoffin (born 17 December 1979) is a former Australian cricketer, who most recently played for Worcestershire in English county cricket, and having previously played for Western Australia and Queensland in Australian domestic matc ...
, the innings including 20 fours and 3 sixes. Rudolph went on to hit further consecutive centuries against
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...
(129*) and
Durham Durham most commonly refers to:
*Durham, England, a cathedral city in north east England
**County Durham, a ceremonial county which includes Durham
*Durham, North Carolina, a city in North Carolina, United States
Durham may also refer to:
Places
...
(104*). His finest moment for Yorkshire came at
North Marine Road
North Marine Road Ground, formerly known as Queen's, is a cricket ground in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, England. It is the home of Scarborough Cricket Club which hosts the Scarborough Festival and the Yorkshire County Cricket Club plays a ...
,
Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to:
People
* Scarborough (surname)
* Earl of Scarbrough
Places Australia
* Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth
* Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong
* Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...
on 23 August where he racked up a double century against
Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Ox ...
and helped put Yorkshire in a commanding position.
Rudolph began the 2007 one-day season opening the batting and took just 3 games to score his maiden one-day century for Yorkshire, hitting exactly 100 off 133 balls against
Leicestershire
Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...
. Despite Rudolph's knock, Yorkshire went on to lose the game by 6 wickets. He kicked off his Pro40 season in style with 127 in a match 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 ...
at Scarborough in a Yorkshire win and continued his good form in the 8-wicket thrashing of
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 ...
with 49* as they went top of Division 2.
He made his
Twenty20
Twenty20 (abbreviated T20) is a shortened format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the county cricket, inter-county competition. In a Twenty20 game, the two t ...
debut for Yorkshire at
Grace Road
Grace Road, known for sponsorship reasons as the Uptonsteel County Ground, Grace Road, is a cricket ground in Leicester, England. It is the home ground and administrative base of Leicestershire County Cricket Club.
History
Leicestershire ...
against
Leicestershire
Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...
in a televised game on 22 June 2007 during the
Twenty20 Cup
The T20 Blast, officially known as the Vitality Blast for sponsorship reasons, is a professional Twenty20 cricket league in England and Wales. The competition was established by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003. T20 Blast is ...
. In a rain reduced game (16 overs) he was the 2nd victim of a
Jeremy Snape
Jeremy Nicholas Snape (born 27 April 1973) is a former English cricketer, who played limited over internationals, and a sports psychologist. He was a right-handed batsman and bowled right-arm off-break. He was the 20/20 captain for Leicester.
...
hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three Wick ...
having scored 3 from 4 balls. He fared considerably better in the
Roses match
The Roses Match refers to any game of cricket played between Yorkshire County Cricket Club and Lancashire County Cricket Club. Yorkshire's emblem is the white rose, while Lancashire's is the red rose. The associations go back to the Wars of the R ...
at
Old Trafford
Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and is the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,197, it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after W ...
, scoring 48* from 38 balls (3 fours, 2 sixes) in a losing total of 113, and remained not out until the final game of the group stages against
Derbyshire
Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...
.
On 18 September 2013, Rudolph signed a two-year contract with
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 ...
subject to approval from the South African Cricket Board. He replaced Australian
Marcus North
Marcus James North (born 28 July 1979) is a former Australian first-class cricketer who played 21 Test matches and two One Day Internationals (ODIs) for the Australian national side.
Born in Melbourne, North grew up in Western Australia, att ...
as Glamorgan's overseas player. He stayed with the club for the 2015 season, and has been announced as their continued overseas player for the 2016 season.
Records
*Jacques Rudolph - who scored 222 not out on debut - and
Boeta Dippenaar
Hendrik Human Dippenaar (born 14 June 1977), known as Boeta Dippenaar, is a former South African cricket team, South African cricketer who played all formats of the game. He is also a member of List of African XI ODI cricketers, ACA African XI. ...
shared an unbroken stand of 429 for South Africa's third wicket against Bangladesh. This is the highest partnership in Test cricket to involve one debutant.
References
External links
*
YorkshireCCC profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rudolph, Jacques
1981 births
Living people
Cricketers from Springs, Gauteng
South African cricket captains
Glamorgan cricket captains
South African cricketers
ACA African XI One Day International cricketers
Glamorgan cricketers
Jamaica Tallawahs cricketers
Knights cricketers
Northerns cricketers
Titans cricketers
Yorkshire cricketers
White South African people
South Africa Twenty20 International cricketers
21st-century South African sportsmen
South Africa One Day International cricketers
South Africa Test cricketers
Cricketers who made a century on Test debut
South African expatriate sportspeople in Wales
South African expatriate cricketers in England
Alumni of Afrikaanse Hoër Seunskool