International career
Colin de Grandhomme was born on 22 July 1986 in Zimbabwe. He played cricket for New Zealand after moving there and was part of the team that won the 2019–2021 ICC World Test Championship. He also helped New Zealand reach the final in the 2019 Cricket World Cup. De Grandhomme was known for his aggressive batting, especially in the lower order, and his medium pace bowling. He became a regular player for New Zealand in all formats of the game.
His father, Laurence de Grandhomme, played first-class cricket in Zimbabwe, and his great-uncle, Bunny de Grandhomme, also played first-class cricket. De Grandhomme qualified to play for New Zealand through residency.
2012
- T20I Debut: New Zealand vs Zimbabwe, Auckland – February 11, 2012
- ODI Debut: New Zealand vs South Africa, Auckland – March 3, 2012
- Scored 36 runs off 36 balls, hitting 3 sixes in his debut ODI.
2016
- Test Debut: New Zealand vs Pakistan, Christchurch – November 17-20, 2016
- Scored a half-century and took 5 wickets on debut, with figures of 6/41.
- Set a new record for the best bowling figures by a New Zealand bowler on Test debut (surpassing the previous record of 6/155 set in 1951).
- Finished with match figures of 7/64 and was named player of the match.
- ODI Return: New Zealand vs Australia, Auckland – December 2016
- After a 4.5-year wait, de Grandhomme returned to the ODI side.
2017
- First Test Century: New Zealand vs West Indies, Hamilton – December 2, 2017
- Scored 71-ball century, which was the second-fastest century by a New Zealand batsman in Test cricket.
- ICC Champions Trophy: Named in New Zealand's squad but did not play in the tournament.
2018
- Contract Awarded: New Zealand Cricket awarded him a new contract for the 2018–19 season.
- Injury: Suffered an ankle injury and missed New Zealand’s 2020-21 home summer.
2019
- Cricket World Cup:
- Part of New Zealand's squad for the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup.
- Played a crucial role in a low-scoring game against South Africa, scoring 60 from 39 balls.
- In the World Cup final, his spell of slow cutters dismissed England’s Joe Root (7 runs from 22 balls), turning the match in New Zealand’s favor before a dramatic final by Ben Stokes.
- ODI Stats:
- Contributed significantly with both bat and ball during the World Cup.
- One of the standout players in New Zealand’s campaign.
2020
- Injury: Missed the 2020-21 home summer due to ankle surgery. The surgery kept him out for an additional six weeks.
2021
- T20I Struggles:
- Faced a slump in batting form, particularly in a 5-match T20I series against Bangladesh, with several low scores.
- Final T20I Match: Bangladesh vs New Zealand, Mirpur – September 10, 2021
- Scored 9 runs off 8 balls in his final T20I match.
- Final ODI Match: New Zealand vs Netherlands, Hamilton – April 4, 2022
- Contributed 4 runs off 5 balls in his last ODI appearance.
2022
- Final Test Match: England vs New Zealand, Lord’s – June 2-5, 2022
- Scored 42 runs off 50 balls in his last Test match.
- Retirement Announcement:
- Announced his retirement from international cricket on August 31, 2022.
Test Career
- Matches: 29
- Runs: 1,432
- Average: 39
- Fours: 141
- Sixes: 41
ODI Career
- Matches: 45
- Runs: 742
- Average: 27
- Fours: 58
- Sixes: 29
T20I Career
- Matches: 41
- Runs: 505
- Average: 16
- Fours: 27
- Sixes: 30
Leagues Participation
Colin de Grandhomme played in many well-known T20 leagues during his career. In 2017, he joined Kolkata Knight Riders for the Indian Premier League and later played for Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2018 and 2019. He also competed in the Champions League with Auckland in the 2012/13 season. In the Caribbean Premier League, he played for the Jamaica Tallawahs in 2018 and then for the St. Lucia Zouks in 2019. In the Big Bash League, he joined the Jamaica Tallawahs for the 2022/2023 season.
Indian Premier League
Colin de Grandhomme played in the Indian Premier League (IPL) with Kolkata Knight Riders in 2017 and Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2018 and 2019. In 2017, he replaced Andre Russell and had a few chances to play. In 2018, he played 9 games, scoring 131 runs and hitting a memorable three sixes against Mumbai Indians. However, in 2019, his performance was lower, with only 46 runs in 4 matches.
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Year
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Team
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Notes
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2017
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Kolkata Knight Riders
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Replaced Andre Russell. Played limited games but took 3 wickets for 4 runs against Bangalore.
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2018
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Royal Challengers Bangalore
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Played 9 matches. Scored 131 runs with an average of 26.20. Hit 3 sixes in a game against Mumbai Indians.
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2019
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Royal Challengers Bangalore
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Played 4 matches. Scored 46 runs with a strike rate of 15.33. Had a tough season but did well in the World Cup.
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Champions League
Colin de Grandhomme played for Auckland in the 2012/13 Champions League Twenty20. He was part of the squad during that season. On October 19, 2012, Auckland had a match scheduled against Delhi Capitals in Durban. The match was cancelled due to rain.
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Year
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Team
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Notes
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2012/13
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Auckland
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Colin de Grandhomme was in the squad; match vs Delhi was rained out
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Caribbean Premier League
Colin de Grandhomme played for Jamaica Tallawahs in the 2018 Caribbean Premier League. He joined as a replacement player. On August 29, 2018, he took part in the match against Barbados Royals in Bridgetown. Jamaica Tallawahs won by 5 wickets, and de Grandhomme scored 15 runs from 8 balls. In 2019, he was with St. Lucia Zouks. In one of the games, he scored 65 runs from 37 balls.
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Year
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Team
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Notes
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2018
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Jamaica Tallawahs
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Joined as replacement; scored 15 (8) vs Barbados Royals; team won
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2019
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St. Lucia Zouks
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Scored 65 runs from 37 balls in one match
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Big Bash League
In the 2022/23 season, Colin de Grandhomme played for Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash League. He was picked in the overseas players' draft. After that, he told New Zealand Cricket that he wanted to stop playing international matches. He said he had injury problems and found it hard to attend training. New Zealand Cricket agreed and removed him from their contract list.
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Year
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Team
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Notes
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2022/23
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Adelaide Strikers
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Signed after draft; left international cricket due to injuries and training issues
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Domestic career
Colin de Grandhomme was born in Harare and began his cricket career with Manicaland in Zimbabwe. He played for the Zimbabwe U-19 team in the 2004 Cricket World Cup and scored a century for the Zimbabwe U-23 team against Eastern Province. He made his List A debut in 2004, scoring 96 not out against Namibia. His first-class debut came in 2005, when he played for Zimbabwe A against Kenya.
In 2006, de Grandhomme moved to New Zealand and joined Auckland. He made his T20 debut for Auckland in 2007 and helped the team win the State Championship in 2008-09 with strong performances in both batting and bowling. In 2016, after scoring 144 not out in a chase for Auckland, he received his first call-up to the New Zealand national team.
De Grandhomme played in various leagues, including the Indian Premier League with Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bangalore. He also played for Warwickshire in England and signed with Northern Districts in 2018 for the New Zealand domestic season. In 2021, he joined Hampshire for the T20 Blast and Southern Brave for The Hundred.
In 2023, he joined Lancashire for the County Championship and T20 Blast. After retiring from international cricket, de Grandhomme continued his career in franchise cricket. He was signed by Adelaide Strikers for the 2022-23 Big Bash League season and played for Manipal Tigers in the Legends League Cricket.
Other Leagues
Colin de Grandhomme played in different short-format leagues in England. He took part in matches for several teams and scored runs or bowled when needed.
- 2017 – Birmingham Bears, NatWest T20 Blast. Played 16 matches, scored 322 runs, took 5 wickets.
- 2018 – Birmingham Bears, Vitality Blast. Scored 63 in a match against Durham on July 15.
- 2021 – Hampshire, T20 Blast. Played 7 matches, scored 150 runs.
- 2021 – Southern Brave, The Hundred. Appeared in 8 games, scored 56 runs in 6 innings.
- 2023 – Lancashire, Vitality T20 Blast. In a match vs Nottinghamshire, scored 5 runs and bowled one over, gave away 9 runs.
Records and achievements
Colin de Grandhomme has earned several key milestones during his career, both with the bat and the ball.
- 2019-2021: Part of New Zealand’s ICC World Test Championship winning team.
- 2019: Played in the ICC Cricket World Cup, where New Zealand finished second.
- December 2, 2017: Scored 100 runs against the West Indies, becoming the second-fastest New Zealand player to do so.
- 2019 World Cup Final: Took the important wicket of Joe Root, contributing to New Zealand’s strong performance.
- Debut Match: Awarded Player of the Match against Pakistan, after scoring 50 runs and taking five wickets.
- Debut Record: Achieved 6/41 in his debut match, breaking a 65-year-old record for New Zealand’s best debut bowling figures.
Personal life
Colin de Grandhomme is a former cricketer from New Zealand who now lives in New Zealand, even though he was born in Zimbabwe. His personal life includes family, finances, and some notable events.
Finance
Colin de Grandhomme has an estimated net worth of $6 million in 2025.
Family
Colin’s father, Lawrence de Grandhomme, played cricket in Zimbabwe at a first-class level. His great uncle, Bunny de Grandhomme, was also a first-class cricketer. Colin married Samantha Wells-Borell in 2023. They have a daughter.
Cars and House
Although born in Zimbabwe, Colin now calls New Zealand home. He has a house in New Zealand and owns several luxury cars.
Scandals
In 2019, Colin faced some criticism, including from Ian Smith, after he was dropped from a match for not supporting a teammate. In 2021, rumors about his death spread after a post from New Zealand Cricket about his new hairstyle. Fans initially thought the post meant he had passed away, but it was later clarified that he was alive and preparing for future matches. In 2022, Colin announced his retirement from international cricket after being chosen to play in the BBL, even though his contract prevented him from taking part.
Fans
Colin has 22k followers on Instagram.
