Brad Wheal is a right-arm pace bowler and right-handed batter.
He was born in Durban, South Africa but holds a British passport and has represented Scotland at both ODI and IT20 level.
After being identified whilst playing for his home-town side, Wheal was offered a development contract for the 2015 season and it didn’t take him long to make an impression as part for Hampshire’s Second XI, before making his full debut that same year.
He went on to make three more first-team appearances in 2015 and his potential with the ball was recognised at a national level after picking up five wickets on his debut for Scotland A during their friendly against the MCC in August.
Having signed a two-year deal at the end of the 2015 season, Wheal made key contributions in all three formats during the 2016 summer, including taking a First-Class career-best 6-51 in a crucial County Championship victory against Nottinghamshire as the team fought to stay in Division One.
His highlight of the 2016 season though was clinching a last-ball ‘el clasicoast’ win at Hove in July, when Hampshire defeated local rivals Sussex Sharks by a single run as Wheal prevented the home side from hitting five off the final over.
Starting off 2017 with Scotland in the United Arab Emirates taking part in the UAE Tri-Series and Desert Twenty20, gaining valuable international and overseas experience, he spent much of his summer playing for the Second XI.
Wheal began 2018 with much promise as he was selected as a starting First XI seam bowler in Hampshire’s County Championship side.
However, his season was cut short towards the end of May as he fell victim to a stress fracture in his spine before further injury caused him to miss all but three fixtures in 2019.
The right-armer made a return in the truncated 2020 season, where he looked to bounce back from his long-term injury. He featured in three Bob Willis Trophy fixtures, claiming five wickets on his return to action.
In 2021, Wheal had his best season in a Hampshire shirt. He took 34 wickets from 13 matches as Hampshire fell just short of a first County Championship title since 1973.
He was also a key contributor in the Blast campaign, taking 17 wickets at an average of 20.82 – which saw him picked up by London Spirit for The Hundred.
At the end of the season, it was announced that Wheal had been selected in Scotland's 2021 T20 World Cup squad where he took eight wickets from as many matches.
With the trio of Kyle Abbot, Keith Barker and Mohammad Abbas leading the attack, red-ball opportunities were limited for Wheal, who even had loan spells at both Gloucestershire and Warwickshire during the season. He still managed to take 11 wickets in three matches for Hampshire.
The Scottish international starred in the Vitality Blast though, taking an impressive 22 wickets at an average of just 17.27 – including a career-best 5-38 against Glamorgan. His performances were vital as the Hawks went on to pick up their third T20 title with a dramatic win over Lancashire Lightning in the final.
As a result, Wheal was selected to play for Scotland at the 2022 ICC T20 Cricket World Cup in Australia.
Wheal suffered another stress fracture injury ahead of the 2023 season which saw him miss the entire Vitality Blast campaign, while he also did not make an appearance in the County Championship.
He impressed during four appearances in the Metro Bank One Day Cup though, taking ten wickets at an average of just 14.70 – including a maiden five wicket haul against Lancashire. Hampshire made it to the final of the 50-over competition but lost out to Leicestershire.
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