Meet Jamie and Craig Overton - The first identical twins to play Test cricket for England?
As England and New Zealand prepare to square off in the Headingley Test on Wednesday, Jamie and Craig Overton will become the first identical twins to play for England. Here's more....
FollowEngland already has an unassailable 2-0 lead over New Zealand in the three-Test series as both sides prepare to face off in the third and final Test at Headingley in Leeds on Thursday. The hosts have a scare in the form of skipper Ben Stokes, who is recovering from an illness. If he misses out, it could open the doors for Jamie Overton, the identical twin of Craig Overton. Notably, if Jamie does make his debut on Thursday, the brotherly duo would become the first identical twin to ever play for the Three Lions. While both are of the same age, Jamie was the first to get the U-19 call-up, whereas Craig made his international debut before the former.
Both Craig and Jamie happen to be all-rounders. Speaking on the same, Craig said, "I'm not the one who can bowl at 90 miles per hour. So I've always been that person who bowls steadily, and I haven't had that X-factor that you sometimes need as a 90mph bowler."
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"I know I can hit line and length pretty well and use my skills more than brute force and brute pace. As I've got older, I've understood that a bit more. I've not tried to bowl 90mph because that's not me, so I've let him do that, and I've tried to do the basics and not go for many runs and let him hit people in the head," added Craig, reports ESPNCricinfo.
Notably, Craig was hit by a bouncer off Jamie during the County Championship. Recalling the same, Jamie reckoned, "I don't want to take too much credit for that. I asked Rory Burns [his Surrey captain] what he wanted to do. I said, 'Do you want to go at them again or try to nick them off?' And, he was like, 'Go at them again and then try and nick them off'. So, when he came back in, I managed to bowl a quicker ball than before, and he just managed to get underneath it."
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The career of the twin brothers began identically, as both signed up for Somerset in 2012. While Craig continues to play for the side, Jamie quit in 2020 to join Surrey in 2021. The former made his Test debut in 2017 during The Ashes. He has scored 182 runs in 14 innings at an average of 15.16, while his best knock happens to be an unbeaten 41. With the ball, he has scalped 21 wickets in 13 innings at 36.19, with his best match figures of 6/61.
Craig also made his subsequent debut in the One-Day Internationals (ODI), besides playing for Southern Brave in The Hundred tournament. As for Jamie, he has amassed 1,872 First-Class (FC) runs in 115 innings at 20.80, including 11 half-centuries and a ton, with a top score of 120. With the ball, he has claimed 206 wickets in 140 innings at 30.22, including seven four-fors and five fifers, while his best match figure happens to 8/107. He is yet to make his The Hundred debut.
