Hansie Cronje

Personal information

Full name

Wessel Johannes Cronje

Born

25 September 1969
Bloemfontein, Orange Free State Province, South Africa

Died

1 June 2002 (aged 32)
Cradock Peak, Outeniqua Mountains, South Africa

Nickname

Hansie

Batting style

Right-handed

Bowling style

Right-arm medium

Role

Allrounder

International information

National side

South Africa

Last Test

2 March 2000 v India

ODI debut (cap 15)

26 February 1992 v Australia

Last ODI

31 March 2000 v Pakistan

ODI shirt no.

Domestic team information

Years

Team

1987–2000

Free State

1997

Ireland

1995

Leicestershire

Career statistics

Competition	Tests	ODI	FC	LA
Matches	68	188	184	304
Runs scored	3714	5565	12103	9862
Batting average	36.41	38.64	43.69	42.32
100s/50s	6/23	2/39	32/57	5/32
Top score	135	112	251	158
Balls bowled	3800	5354	9897	7651
Wickets	43	114	116	170
Bowling average	29.95	34.78	34.43	33.50
5 wickets in innings	0	1	0	1
10 wickets in match	0	n/a	0	n/a
Best bowling	3/14	5/32	4/47	5/32
Catches/stumpings	33/–	73/–	121/1	105/–

Source: cricketarchive.com, 22 August 2007

Wessel Johannes "Hansie" Cronje (25 September 1969 – 1 June 2002) was a South African cricketer and captain of the South African national cricket team in the 1990s. He died in a plane crash in 2002. He was voted the 11th greatest South African in 2004 despite having been banned from cricket for life due to his role in a match-fixing scandal.

Cronje was born in Bloemfontein, South Africa to Ewie Cronje and San-Marie Cronje on 25 September 1969. He graduated in 1987 from Grey College in Bloemfontein, where he was the head boy. An excellent all round sportsman, he represented the then Orange Free State Province in cricket and rugby at schools level. He was the captain of his school's cricket and rugby teams. Cronje earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of the Free State. He had an older brother, Frans Cronje, and a younger sister, Hester Parsons.

His father Ewie had played for Orange Free State in the 1960s, and Frans had also played first-class cricket.

Cronje made his first-class debut for Orange Free State against Transvaal at Johannesburg in January 1988 at the age of 18. In the following season, he was a regular, appearing in all eight Currie Cup matches plus being part of the Benson and Hedges Series winning team, scoring 73 as an opener in the final. In 1989–90, despite playing all the Currie Cup matches, he failed to make a century, and averaged only 19.76; however, in one-day games he averaged 60.12. During that season he scored his maiden century for South African Universities against Mike Gatting's rebels.

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