Johnathan Campbell

International career

Johnathan Campbell, born on December 17, 1997, began his international cricket journey in 2024, and quickly made his mark with eye-catching performances and notable achievements. His rise was swift—from a powerful T20I debut to the rare distinction of captaining Zimbabwe in his very first Test match. Though still in the early stages of his international career, Campbell has already delivered moments that stand out. Here’s a year-by-year look at how his journey has unfolded so far.

2023

• African Games (Accra, Ghana)
  Though the event was part of the 2023 African Games, it was held in March 2024.
  Johnathan Campbell represented the Zimbabwe Emerging Team in the men's cricket tournament.
  • Zimbabwe won the gold medal, defeating Namibia by 8 wickets in the final.

 2024

• March 2024 – African Games
  • Represented Zimbabwe Emerging at the delayed 2023 African Games.
  • Gold medal winner in men's cricket tournament.
• April 2024 – First Senior Call-Up
  • Named in Zimbabwe’s T20I squad for the five-match series against Bangladesh.
• May 5, 2024 – T20I Debut
  • Debut: Zimbabwe vs Bangladesh at Chattogram.
  • Impactful unbeaten 45 off 24 balls, including 4 fours and 3 sixes.
  • Strike rate: 187.5.
  • Helped Zimbabwe reach 138/7, though Bangladesh won comfortably.
• July 2024 – T20I Series vs India
  • Retained in Zimbabwe’s squad for the home T20I series vs India.
  • Last T20I appearance: July 14, 2024 vs India at Harare – scored 4 runs off 7 balls.
• December 2024 – Test Squad Call-Up
  • Included in the Test squad vs Afghanistan for a two-match series.
  • Did not play in either game.

2025

• February 6–10, 2025 – Test Debut
  • 36th player to captain his country on Test debut.
  • Second Zimbabwean (after David Houghton) to do so.
  • Part of a historic father-son duo with Alistair Campbell as both captained Zimbabwe in Tests.
  • Received Test cap from his father.
  • Debut and captaincy in the one-off Test vs Ireland at Bulawayo.
  • Named captain due to Craig Ervine’s withdrawal (birth of first child).
  • Became:
  • Performance: Scored 37 runs across innings, with 4 fours, average of 19.
• February 14, 2025 – ODI Debut
  • Debut: Zimbabwe vs Ireland at Harare Sports Club.
• February 18, 2025 – Last ODI (to date)
  • Matches: 3
  • Runs: 8
  • Average: 8.0
  • Boundaries: 0 fours, 0 sixes
  • Played his third ODI vs Ireland at Harare.
  • Overall ODI stats:

Leagues Participation

Despite making a promising start to his international career, Johnathan Campbell has not yet participated in any professional T20 franchise leagues.

Domestic career

Johnathan Campbell started playing domestic cricket in 2017. His first T20 match was for Boost Defenders in the Shpageeza Cricket League on September 15, 2017, in Kabul. In December 2019, he played his first first-class match for Rangers in the Logan Cup. A few months later, in February 2020, he played his first List A match, also for Rangers, in the Pro50 Championship.

Campbell has played for several teams in Zimbabwe. In the 2020–21 season, he joined Mid West Rhinos. He continued to play for them in 2022 as well. In January 2023, he played two Logan Cup matches — one against Mashonaland Eagles in Kwekwe and another against Mountaineers in Harare.

In the 2023–24 Logan Cup, Campbell played for Southern Rocks. He scored 675 runs in six matches with an average of 61.36. He reached a hundred in four of those matches. In one of the games against Mashonaland Eagles in October 2024, he scored 79 runs from 110 balls.

In March 2025, he played in several T20 matches for Southern Rocks. He was part of matches against Tuskers (March 29), Rhinos (March 28), Mountaineers (March 26), and Eagles (March 25).

Records and achievements

Johnathan Campbell started playing for Zimbabwe not long ago, but he already has some important numbers and moments in his career. His name appears in both team and individual records.

• Played for Zimbabwe Emerging at the 13th African Games in Ghana in March.
• Helped Zimbabwe win the gold medal after beating Namibia by 8 wickets in the final.
• Made T20I debut on May 5 against Bangladesh in Chattogram. Scored 45 runs from 24 balls. Hit 4 fours and 3 sixes.
• Took part in 9 T20I matches. Scored 123 runs with an average of 15. Hit 8 fours and 7 sixes in total.
• Played in the home T20I series against India in July. Scored 4 runs from 7 balls at Harare Sports Club.
• Appeared in 3 ODI matches. Total runs: 8. Average: 8. Did not hit any boundaries.
• Last ODI match was on February 18 against Ireland. Did not score in that game.
• First Test match played on February 6 against Ireland in Bulawayo.
• Was named captain for that Test match. Craig Ervine could not play, so Campbell led the team.
• Became the 36th player in Test history to captain on debut. He is the second Zimbabwean after David Houghton to do this.
• Received his Test cap from his father, Alistair Campbell. They became the first father and son to both lead Zimbabwe in Tests.
• Scored 37 runs in his first Test. Hit 4 boundaries. Batting average: 19.

Personal life

Johnathan Campbell was born on December 17, 1997, in Harare, Zimbabwe. He does not speak much about his personal life in public. Most attention goes to his matches and career.

Family

His father is Alistair Campbell, former captain of the Zimbabwe national cricket team. His uncle, Donald Campbell, also played cricket. There is no public information about his wife or children.

Finances

Sources estimate his total wealth to be around 1 million US dollars.

Scandals

Johnathan Campbell has not been part of any major scandal. Sometimes fans confuse him with another cricketer — John Campbell from Jamaica. In December 2024, the Jamaican player missed the draw at the Super50 final and got a four-match ban from Cricket West Indies. He later said sorry and explained that he did not mean to disrespect the game. In 2022, the same Jamaican player also got a ban from the anti-doping agency. These stories are not about the Zimbabwean Johnathan Campbell.

Fans

His fan base is small. There is an Instagram page with about 2,000 followers, but it is not clear if it belongs to him.