Cricketers who represented two countries on International level

Cricketers who represented two countries on International level

Cricketers are considered to be the ambassadors of a country in another state. And representing a whole nation on the biggest ramp surely possesses great honor. The moment a cricketers makes his international debut for a side he is expected to be faithful and honest with his side throughout the career. Every cricket personality loves glorifying his side’s name however there are some cricketers who have given their all to not one but two countries in their careers. Cricketers who represented two countries on international level game are a unique class of players. It is to be noted that unlike soccer, in cricket there are not that much rivalries among teams. So a player moving from one team to another does not usually get the title of a traitor and alike. However he still requires to meet a certain criteria.

In international cricket there are a total of 26 cricketers who represented two countries during their playing career. 14 players appeared in test games for two nations. Nine in ODIs while 4 have appeared in T20 formats for two teams so far. In past, the major reasons for players appearing for two countries was their migration to some other country. A player born in one country, played some cricket and then moved to another had no clear cricket rules on which side he should play. Thus he opted for going for both countries. As of today however, citizenship has become the mandatory measure for a player to appear for a country. Interestingly, cricketers who represented two countries in international cricket feature some of the bitter rival sides as well.

Pakistan and India are the biggest rivals in cricket world. However a total of three players have represented both countries on international level. Seems unbelievable but there was a solid reason for them doing so. These three players represented India before the partition and fused into Pakistan side after the country was created. Similarly Australia and England have been exchanging players in past. Another factor that ignited the cricketers who represented two countries was the level of competition. Getting a permanent spot in an international team is really tough task considering the amount of cricketing talent countries possess. Lack of opportunities for players to highlight their skills at international level urge them to find new places, where they could get more often chances to perform. Cricketers who represented two countries on International level in all three formats are given below respectively.

Cricketers who represented two countries in Test Matches

Player	Teams	Span	Matches	Runs
WE Midwinter	Australia England	11881-1882 1877-1887	8 4	174 95
WL Murdoch	Australia England	1877-1890 1892-1892	18 1	896 12
JJ Ferris	Australia England	1887-1890 1892-1892	8 1	98 16
SMJ Woods	Australia England	1888-1888 1896-1896	3 3	32 122
F Hearne	England South Africa	1889-1889 1892-1896	2 4	47 121
AE Trott	Australia England	1895-1895 1899-1899	3 2	205 23
F Mitchell	England South Africa	1899-1899 1912-1912	2 3	88 28
Nawab of Pataudi SR	England India	1932-1934 1946-1946	3 3	144 55
Gul Mohammad	India Pakistan	1946-1952 1956-1956	8 1	166 39
AH Kardar	India Pakistan	1946-1946 1952-1958	3 23	80 847
Amir Elahi	India Pakistan	1947-1947 1952-1952	1 5	17 65
SC Guillen	West Indies New Zealand	1951-1952 1956-1956	5 3	104 98
AJ Traicos	South Africa Zimbabwe	1970-1970 1992-1993	3 4	8 11
KC Wessels	Australia South Africa	1982-1985 1992-1994	24 16	1761 1027

Cricketers who represented two countries in ODIs

Player	Teams	Span	Matches	Runs
KC Wessels	Australia South Africa	1983-1985 1991-1994	54 55	1740 1627
CB Lambert	West Indies United States of America	1990-1998 2004-2004	11 1	368 39
AC Cummins	West Indies Canada	1991-1995 2007-2007	63 13	459 27
DR Brown	England Scotland	1997-1998 2006-2007	9 16	99 220
GO Jones	England Papua New Guinea	2004-2006 2014-2014	49 2	815 47
EC Joyce	England Ireland	2006-2007 2011-2016	17 40	471 1282
EJG Morgan	Ireland England	2006-2009 2009-2016	23 137	744 4012
WB Rankin	Ireland England	2007-2016 2013-2014	38 7	35 5
L Ronchi	Australia New Zealand	2008-2008 2013-2016	4 66	76 1083

Cricketers who represented two countries in T20s

Player	Teams	Span	Matches	Runs
EC Joyce	England Ireland	2006-2007 2012-2014	2 16	1 404
RE van der Merwe	South Africa Netherlands	2009-2010 2015-2016	13 8	57 68
L Ronchi	Australia New Zealand	2008-2009 2013-2016	3 26	47 312
DP Nannes	Netherlands Australia	2009-2009 2009-2010	2 15	6 16
WB Rankin	Ireland England	2009-2016 2013-2013	20 2	29 –