Kevon Keston Cooper (born 2 February 1989) is a former cricketer from

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

. He played for

and

Leeward Islands french: Îles-Sous-le-Vent , image_name = , image_caption = ''Political'' Leeward Islands. Clockwise: Antigua and Barbuda, Guadeloupe, Saint kitts and Nevis. , image_alt = , locator_map = , location = Caribbean SeaNorth Atlantic Ocean , coor ...

as well as for

Rajasthan Royals Rajasthan Royals (often abbreviated as RR) are a franchise cricket team based in Jaipur, Rajasthan, that plays in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Founded in 2008 as one of the initial eight IPL franchises, the team is based at the Sawai Ma ...

in the

IPL The Indian Premier League (IPL), also known as TATA IPL for sponsorship reasons, is a men's T20 franchise cricket league of India. It is annually contested by ten teams based out of seven Indian cities and three Indian states. The leagu ...

and in various other

Twenty20 Twenty20 (T20) is a shortened game format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the inter-county competition. In a Twenty20 game, the two teams have a single innin ...

leagues around the world.

Early life

Cooper comes from a footballing family. One of his brothers,

Kevin Molino Kevin Reginald Molino (born 17 June 1990) is a Trinidadian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Major League Soccer club Columbus Crew and the Trinidad and Tobago national team. Club career Orlando City After playing for severa ...

, plays for

Minnesota United Minnesota United FC is an American professional soccer club based in Saint Paul, Minnesota that plays in the Western Conference of Major League Soccer. The club began play in 2017 as the league's 22nd club, and replaced the North American So ...

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

. He grew up playing football as well but was persuaded by his father, a cricket fan, to switch his allegiance. When Cooper was picked for the T&T Under-19 squad, he left football behind.

Cricket career

In January 2011, cricket officials raised concerns over Cooper's

bowling action In the sport of cricket, the bowling action is the set of movements that result in the bowler releasing the ball in the direction of the batsman. The bowling action can be broken down into a number of parts: * Grip *Approach *Bound (pre deliv ...

, and he went to the

University of Western Australia The University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Perth, the state capital, with a secondary campus in Albany, Western Australia, Albany an ...

to undergo tests and undertake remedial work to correct the fault in his bowling action. In August 2011, Cooper was cleared to play. He returned and participated in the Champions League in 2011. Mixing speeds with his medium pacers to good effect, he took five wickets in six games while conceding just 5.29 runs an over. Coming in at No. 7, he posted a strike rate of 191.17 at an average of 21.66. It was these attributes that drew the attention of the Royals, who bought him for $50,000 in the IPL player auction. During

' first game against

Kings XI Punjab Punjab Kings (PBKS) are a franchise cricket team based in Mohali, Punjab, that plays in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Established in 2008 as the Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), the franchise is jointly owned by Mohit Burman, Ness Wadia, Preity Zi ...

, he hit his first ball for a six and followed it up with a four. With the ball in hand, he claimed 4 wickets. Against

Kolkata Knight Riders Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are a franchise cricket team representing the city of Kolkata in the Indian Premier League. The franchise is owned by Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan, actress Juhi Chawla and her spouse Jay Mehta. The Knight Riders p ...

, he took 3 more wickets.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Kevon 1989 births Living people Trinidad and Tobago cricketers Trinbago Knight Riders cricketers Rajasthan Royals cricketers Chattogram Challengers cricketers Uthura Rudras cricketers Fortune Barishal cricketers Lahore Qalandars cricketers Khulna Tigers cricketers Leeward Islands cricketers Dhaka Dominators cricketers