Good On Ya Geraint

It’s a bit quiet today, so we thought we’d bring you an interview with the ever popular Geraint Jones.

The evergreen Geraint played his final professional match at the weekend when his Gloucestershire side defeated Surrey at Lord’s in the Royal London Cup.

It was a fairytale ending to what has been an excellent first class career. Jones even scored a priceless 50 batting at number six. It was his team’s top score in a low scoring game. Crucial.

I’ve always had a soft spot for Geraint. He was a stylish batsman and never let England’s success in the 2005 Ashes go to his head. Alongside Ashley Giles, he was the unsung hero of that side. While other players stole the glory and the limelight, Jones just counted his blessings, enjoyed the ride, and kept his head down.

As you’ll hear the audio clip, he hasn’t really changed over the years. He’s still likeable and unassuming.

Perhaps he shouldn’t be quite so modest. Although his England career fizzled out after 34 matches and 51 ODIs, his county career was successful and enduring: he scored over 9,000 first class runs at an average of 32.5 (with fifteen tons) and made over 3,500 list A runs at 26. He also scored a test century, took over one thousand catches and executed over one hundred stumpings. That’s not bad in anyone’s book.

Few professional cricketers have had such a rich and varied career. Although he made his professional debut at the relatively late age of 24, he certainly made up for it. He even had the pleasure of representing Papua New Guinea, the country of his birth, in the World T20 qualifiers a few years after his England career ended.

Let’s hope he isn’t lost to the game. He has a wealth of experience to pass on.

Good luck in whatever you do next, Geraint. It has been a pleasure.

James Morgan

@DoctorCopy

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