Wayne Madsen: South African-born Italian Cricket Star

Wayne Madsen was born on January 2, 1984, in South Africa and is now an Italian cricketer who bats right-handed. He has played for Derbyshire in England since 2009 and has scored many runs. He started playing for the Italy national team in 2023 because of his family roots. Before cricket, he played field hockey for South Africa and was in the 2006 Hockey World Cup and Commonwealth Games. In 2026, he captained Italy at the T20 World Cup.

Contents

Wayne Madsen’s Hockey Career and South Africa

Wayne Madsen played field hockey for the South Africa men’s national team and made 39 international appearances. He represented South Africa at the 2006 Commonwealth Games and the 2006 Men’s Hockey World Cup, showing he was one of the best hockey players in his country. After his hockey career, he moved into cricket and became a professional cricket player, later playing for Italy in international cricket because of his family roots.

Wayne Madsen’s Cricket Career and Achievements

Wayne is a South African-born cricketer who bats right-handed and bowls sometimes. He started playing cricket in South Africa before joining Derbyshire in England in 2009, where he became one of their best batters and also captain.

He later qualified to play for the Italy national team in 2023 because of his Italian roots. In December 2025, he was named Italy’s captain for the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup but got injured in the first game.

Fmt	M	Inn	NO	Runs	HS	Avg	BF	SR
T20I	8	7	1	205	61*	34.2	155	132.3

Wayne Madsen Played Two World Cups in Two Sports

Wayne’s is a very rare sports player who played World Cups in two different sports for two countries. He played for South Africa in the 2006 Men’s Hockey World Cup in Germany. After twenty years, he captained Italy in the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup, which is very unusual in world sports history.

Wayne Madsen Injured in Italy vs Scotland World Cup Match

Italy captain Madsen, age 42, got injured in the first World Cup match against Scotland. He hurt his shoulder while diving to stop the ball at mid-wicket at Eden Gardens. He dislocated it and left the field with his arm in a sling. Doctors will also check for a concussion and neck injury.