Early career and 1996 Cricket World Cup Kallis attended and played cricket for
Wynberg Boys' High School. In 2009 Wynberg honoured Kallis by naming their main cricket oval after him. In July 1993 he was picked for South Africa U-17's against Scotland's U-19 team. He made his
first-class debut in 1993/94 as an 18-year-old, playing for
Western Province B. Still 18, Kallis played league cricket in
England for Old Edwardians in
Solihull in 1994, where coaching staff saw the potential for him to become a first-class all-rounder; the following summer he played for
Netherfield in
Kendal, scoring 791 runs at an average of 98.87 from 14 matches. His first
Test appearance was on 14–18 December 1995 against
England in
Durban, but he struggled with the bat in his first few matches. Kallis made his World Cup debut in
1996 in
Pakistan but did not have much opportunity to excel. His breakthrough came in 1997, with 61 against
Pakistan, and then two matches later, he salvaged a draw for
South Africa with a fighting century against
Australia at the
Melbourne Cricket Ground.
1998–2002 Between 1998 and 2002, Jacques Kallis was one of the world's leading all-rounders, as seen in the
ICC's cricket ratings. In 1998, he led South Africa to the
ICC Champions Trophy title with two "Man of the Match" and the "Player of the Series" performances. The youngster was solid, without being spectacular, in the 1999 ICC
Cricket World Cup, before a "Player of the Series" performance led South Africa to a stunning Test series victory against India in India in 2000. By late 2001 he was the world's number one ranked Test all-rounder, having held the same ranking in ODIs for the best part of 3 years. During this time, "Kallis blossomed into arguably the world's leading batsman, with a defensive technique second to none, and the adhesive qualities of a Cape Point limpet. Generally a placid and undemonstrative man, he nailed down the crucial No. 3 positions in the South African batting order after several players had been tried and discarded, and his stock rose exponentially from that moment." He was also named in the World ODI XI by the ICC for the year 2004 and 12th man for XI in 2005. In 2005, he set the record for the fastest half-century in Test cricket history, scoring 50 against
Zimbabwe off only 24 balls. In 2007, Kallis scored five centuries in four Tests, making him just the fourth man after Bradman,
Ken Barrington and
Matthew Hayden to score four centuries in four Tests on two different occasions. Kallis has a remarkable
batting average in the mid-50s, and was consistently rated as one of the best batsmen in the world. Although a very capable bowler with 292 Test wickets, he impressed mostly with the bat between 2005 and 2007. As a result, he evolved into more of a batting all-rounder, a role in which he continued because of the emergence of
Dale Steyn,
Morné Morkel, and
Vernon Philander. Kallis is the only man to score over 10,000 runs and to take over 200 wickets in Test cricket. Sir Garfield Sobers managed over 8,000 runs and 200 wickets by comparison, at very similar averages, although Sobers achieved this feat in just 93 tests compared to Kallis’ 166. In 2005, Kallis was selected for the World XI team to play an Asian XI in a benefit match for those affected by the
tsunami of 2004, along with countryman
Shaun Pollock. In the same year, he was awarded the
Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for the ICC player of the year. The award was shared with
Andrew Flintoff of England, his only serious competitor as the world's leading all-rounder, after the votes of the academy were tied. Kallis also won the "ICC Test Player of the Year" award that year. During this time, the Proteas won one series (against West Indies), drew four (two against India, one against England, and one against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates), and lost one series to a resilient Australia. Kallis scored 173 in Nagpur in 2010. In the Centurion Test against India later in the year, he scored his maiden double-century in Test match cricket. His 201 not out came in a landslide victory for South Africa, as two of the team's future batting stars contributed significant hundreds of their own (AB de Villiers and future captain Hashim Amla). For the second time in his career, Kallis scored twin centuries in a match, during the third Test of the series at his home ground, Newlands in Cape Town. In January 2012, Kallis scored his highest score in Tests – 224 against Sri Lanka at Newlands. The last eight series that Kallis played in for South Africa were all victories for the Proteas, except for one series draw against Pakistan in the UAE. Kallis became one of the few players in world cricket to have won two series each in England and Australia. The Proteas also won two series against New Zealand and one against each of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, England, and Australia. Throughout this period of his career, Kallis was still valued for his bowling. He contributed valuable economical overs and had a knack for taking important wickets. In September 2014, Kallis signed a one-year contract with the Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash League. In his first appearance for the Thunder he scored an important innings of 97* and picked up a wicket.
2008–2013: The senior all-rounder In 2008 more responsibility was placed on Kallis as an all-rounder due to the retirement of
Shaun Pollock. Despite the pressure, an all-rounder began to emerge in
Wayne Parnell who did some good lower-order batting. Kallis endured an uncharacteristically poor 2008 with the bat, averaging well under thirty for much of it. Against the ninth-ranked
Bangladesh, he averaged just 25.75 in four Test outings. He also played for
Royal Challengers Bangalore in the
Indian Premier League, where he averaged 16.85 runs per innings with the bat and 55.5 runs per wicket with the ball at an economy rate of 9.65 in the 7 matches he played before he was dropped.
Home and away series against Australia (2008–09) South Africa toured Australia for a three-match Test series and five-match ODI series starting in December 2008. The tourists had a successful 9–2 Test win–loss ratio in 2008; however, Australia had just come off a 2–0 away series defeat against India and had a 5–3 ratio for the calendar year. Before the series, Kallis had a batting average of 38.32 in 18 Tests against the number one ranked team, substantially lower than his overall average of 55.06. Despite an average of 124.50 in 12 Tests against lowly ranked
Zimbabwe and
Bangladesh, former Australia fast-bowler
Rodney Hogg labeled the all-rounder "a flat-track bully, who dishes it out to the minnows like Bangladesh and Zimbabwe but goes missing against the Australians." In the first Test starting on 17 December, Kallis scored 63 in South Africa's first innings, before he was dismissed by
Mitchell Johnson, in the midst of a bowling spell consisting of 5/2 in 20 balls. After failing to make a breakthrough in Australia's first innings, Kallis took 3/24 in their second, while completing four catches in the match. He then scored 57, while being involved in a 124-run partnership with
AB de Villiers, as South Africa chased down 414, the second-highest fourth-innings run-chase in Test history. In the second Test in
Melbourne starting on
Boxing Day, Kallis struggled to be potent in Australia's first innings, taking 1/55. While making a start in his team's first dig, he managed only 26, before taking 2/57 when the home-side batted again. Chasing just 183, Kallis was not required to bat, as South Africa completed their first Test series victory in Australia. In Australia's 103 run Third Test victory in Sydney, Kallis struggled, taking 1/54 and 0/13 with the ball, while scoring 37 and four with the bat. The win was South Africa's 11th in a year in which they drew with India in India, defeated England in England, Australia in Australia, and also recorded series wins over West Indies and Bangladesh. Kallis was featured in all of those matches and remains an integral part of the champion team's set-up. For his performances in 2010, 2011 and 2012, he was named in the World Test XI by the ICC. On 10 April 2013 he was named one of the
Wisden Cricketers of the Year for 2013. For his performances in 2010 and 2012, he was named in the ESPNcricinfo IPL XI.. In the same ODI Jacques Kallis scored his 129th ODI six, a record for a South African in the format. However, he picked up an injury and was a doubtful starter for the second ODI. In December 2010, on the 3rd day of the first test against India, Kallis scored his maiden double century, scoring 201* (not out). Kallis was selected by South Africa for the 2011
ICC Cricket World Cup. In the 2011–12 season, Kallis scored his second double century in Test cricket, reaching 224 in South Africa's first innings of the third Test of the
home series against Sri Lanka. The Test was Kallis's 150th; he became the sixth player in history and the first South African to reach this milestone. After the series, former Indian captain
Sourav Ganguly said that he considered Kallis to be the "most-effective player" in Test cricket.
Brett Lee named Kallis as the best player in the world in an interview after their victory for
Kolkata Knight Riders for his performance in
IPL 2012 final against
Chennai Super Kings. He played a crucial role in the qualification of the Royal Challengers Bangalore for the Champions League T20 during IPL-3 and later on played a crucial role in the triumph of Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL-5, scoring a total of 407 runs and taking 15 wickets. In August 2023, at the age of 47, Kallis played in the California Knights’ opening match in the US Masters T10. He scored an unbeaten 64 off 31 balls. == Coaching career ==