If you didn’t know who he was and looked at him from afar, you’d think he was Kevin Pietersen in his youth. Because of the eerie similarity between the two batsmen, cricket pundits are referring to Tom Banton as the next Kevin Pietersen of English cricket.
Career
Domestic career
On July 16, 2017, Banton made his Twenty20 cricket debut for Somerset in the 2017 NatWest t20 Blast. On September 18, 2018, he made his first-class debut for Somerset in the 2018 County Championship. Banton’s ability set was clear to those who saw him play, and he landed a contract with Somerset for the T20 blast in the 2017-18 season. He was a product of the Warwickshire system and later, the England U19.
He scored 454 runs in Somerset’s triumphant One-Day Cup campaign, including scores of 112, 59, and 69 in the three knockout games, before thrashing 549 more in the Vitality Blast after making tactical changes under Marcus Trescothick’s tutelage. His televised 52-ball century against Kent was the tournament’s best innings, and he was called up by England at the end of the season.
IPL career
Tom Banton, a hard-hitting cricketer known for bludgeoning bowling attacks, will be looking to fill the hole left by Chris Lynn, who was released by the Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2020 IPL Auction. Late last December, the franchise purchased Banton in an auction for INR 1 crore. Last season, Banton had a strike rate of 176.98 when playing for Brisbane Heat in Australia’s Big Bash League, and the KKR franchise will be looking for a repeat result in 2020.
International career
Banton’s outstanding batting performances at the top of the Somerset order propelled him into England’s T20 squad and attracted interest from franchises all over the world. On November 5, 2019, Tom made his T20I debut against New Zealand, scoring 18 runs at the top of the order.
Banton was part of the series against Ireland, Pakistan, and Australia after the resumption of cricket in England following the months-long lockout.
Tom Banton made his ODI debut against Ireland on August 4, 2020, and is a relative newcomer to the game, having played just six games and scoring a single half-century.
Background
Tom Banton was born in Chiltern, Buckinghamshire, on November 11, 1998. Before going to King’s College, he was a student of the Warwickshire Academy. Later, he enrolled at King’s College, where his housemaster, Phil Lewis, a retired English cricketer, saw his promise and mentored him. Lewis also coached Jos Buttler, the English wicket-keeper batsman. He got his early education at Bromsgrove College. He went on to King’s College, a boarding school in Somerset, England, to finish his education.