Sam Fanning

{{Short description|Australian cricketer}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2022}}

{{Infobox cricketer

| name = Sam Fanning

| image =

| fullname = Samuel Thomas Fanning

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|2000|10|20|df=yes}}

| birth_place = Christchurch, New Zealand

| batting = Left-handed

| bowling = Right-arm off break

| role = Batsman

| club1 = Western Australia

| year1 = 2022/23–

| clubnumber1 = 28

| club2 = Perth Scorchers

| year2 = 2023/24–

| clubnumber2 = 20

| hidedeliveries = true

| columns = 3

| column1 = FC

| matches1 = 12

| runs1 = 496

| bat avg1 = 24.80

| 100s/50s1 = 0/4

| top score1 = 95

| catches/stumpings1 = 9/–

| column2 = LA

| matches2 = 4

| runs2 = 68

| bat avg2 = 17.00

| 100s/50s2 = 0/0

| top score2 = 34

| catches/stumpings2 = 5/–

| column3 = T20

| matches3 = 4

| runs3 = 102

| bat avg3 = 25.50

| 100s/50s3 = 0/0

| top score3 = 41

| catches/stumpings3 = 2/–

| date = 23 February

| year = 2025

| source = https://www.espncricinfo.com/player/sam-fanning-1168687 Cricinfo

}}

Samuel Thomas Fanning (born 20 October 2000) is a New Zealand-born Australian cricketer who plays first-class cricket for the Western Australia cricket team. He made his first-class debut against New South Wales in the 2022–23 Sheffield Shield. He has also represented the Australian under-19 team in both Test and ODI cricket.

Career

Fanning represented Australia at the 2020 Under-19 Cricket World Cup.{{cite web |last1=Middleton |first1=Dave |title=Next generation: Australia reveal U19 World Cup squad |url=https://www.cricket.com.au/news/australia-u19-world-cup-squad-named-2020-tournament-south-africa/2019-12-13 |website=cricket.com.au |access-date=25 November 2022}} In the quarter-final against India he top-scored for Australia with 75 runs, but received two demerit points from the ICC for elbowing Akash Singh during the match.{{cite web |last1=Tiwari |first1=Ajay |title=U19 World Cup: Australia's Sam Fanning punished by ICC for elbowing Akash Singh in quarter-final |url=https://www.indiatoday.in/sports/cricket/story/icc-u19-world-cup-australia-sam-fanning-demerit-point-elbow-akash-singh-1641647-2020-01-30 |website=India Today |date=30 January 2020 |access-date=25 November 2022}}{{cite web |title=Sam Fanning receives two demerit points for breaching ICC Code of Conduct |url=https://www.icc-cricket.com/news/1593341 |website=ICC Cricket |access-date=25 November 2022}} He also faced criticism along with some of his teammates for inappropriate comments made on social media during the tournament that appeared to mock non-native English speakers, with a Cricket Australia statement labelling the comments as "having no place in society".{{cite web |title=CA to consider sanctioning U-19 players for controversial Instagram comments |url=https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/ca-to-consider-sanctioning-u-19-players-for-controversial-instagram-comments-1214886 |website=ESPNCricinfo |access-date=25 November 2022}}

Fanning plays for Perth in Western Australian Premier Cricket and had a breakout season in 2021–22, scoring more First Grade runs than any other batter,{{cite web |title=Batting Averages and Aggregates |url=http://waca.wa.cricket.com.au/common/pages/public/rv/cricket/battingav.aspx?entityid=12&id=RV_CBA& |website=WA Premier Cricket |access-date=25 November 2022}} and scoring over 1000 runs for the season across all competitions by mid-January.{{cite web |last1=McArdle |first1=Jordan |title=WA rookie Sam Fanning reaches 1000 runs for the summer after back-to-back centuries for Perth Cricket Club |url=https://thewest.com.au/sport/cricket/wa-rookie-sam-fanning-reaches-1000-runs-for-the-summer-after-back-to-back-centuries-for-perth-cricket-club-c-5331342 |website=The West Australian |date=16 January 2022 |access-date=25 November 2022}} His performance in grade cricket earned a call-up to his state side for the first match of the 2022–23 Sheffield Shield in which he scored a gritty 32 from 161 balls.{{cite web |title=Western Australia's Teague Wyllie the youngest Sheffield Shield centurion in three decades, with 104 against NSW |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-10-05/wa-teague-wyllie-youngest-since-ricky-ponting-shield-century/101502244 |website=ABC News |date=5 October 2022 |access-date=25 November 2022}}

Shortly after his first-class debut Fanning played two T20 matches for Western Australia against a touring Indian side as part of the Indian warm-ups for the 2022 T20 World Cup. In the first of these matches Fanning gained attention for scoring a half-century after coming in with his team 4 wickets down for just 12 runs.{{cite web |last1=McArdle |first1=Jordan |title=India beat WA by 13 runs despite stunning Sam Fanning knock at packed WACA ground |url=https://thewest.com.au/sport/cricket/india-beat-wa-by-13-runs-despite-stunning-sam-fanning-knock-at-packed-waca-ground-c-8498887 |website=The West Australian |date=10 October 2022 |access-date=25 November 2022}}

=Pitch tampering=

In March 2023, Fanning received a four-game ban from the WA Premier Cricket competition, with a further two matches suspended, after being caught on film digging his spikes into the protected area of the pitch during the WA Premier Cricket final in Perth between Perth CC and Bayswater-Morley CC.{{cite web |last1=Savage|first1=Nick|title=West Australian cricketer Sam Fanning cops four-match ban after being caught pitch tampering |url=https://www.foxsports.com.au/cricket/west-australian-cricketer-sam-fanning-cops-fourmatch-ban-after-being-caught-pitch-tampering/news-story/c2469d8cc19630bf0ca2cddf8b346680|website=Fox Cricket |date=31 March 2023 |access-date=1 April 2023}} Furthermore, he will be ineligible for state selection early next season.{{cite web |last1=|first1=|title=Sam Fanning to miss start of next season after ban for pitch tampering|url=https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/sam-fanning-western-australia-batter-to-miss-start-of-next-season-after-ban-for-pitch-tampering-1365803|website=ESPNcricinfo|access-date=1 April 2023}}

References

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