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| | Friday, 20 September, 2002, 08:45 GMT 09:45 UK County game loses Jazz  Fleming spent four years in the army before cricket This year has seen a huge number of distinguished players announcing intentions to retire. Former England bowler Angus Fraser got in early, taking a full-time job in journalism barely a month into the season. More recently, Neil Fairbrother announced he was ending a 20-year association with Lancashire. During a year in which neither made an impression at Derbyshire, Rob Bailey and Tim Munton both called time on careers that included England call-ups. And county stalwarts such as Graham Rose, Stuart Lampitt and Paul Johnson will all ended lengthy careers this week.
After 13 years of what he describes as "running, chasing and throwing a little red ball," gaining 9206 first-class rns and 290 wickets, Fleming is ready for pastures new. And he feels that the camaraderie evident in his early years has disappeared since his first-class debut in 1989. "Cricket wasn't as serious then; it was more of a game," he told BBC Five Live's Sport on Five programme. "It has gone backwards in some ways; the spirit of enjoyment and adventure has gone out of it." Learning curve A career in cricket was not always on the cards, and Fleming took an unusual route into the game, via a four-year spell in the army. "Kent explained that they had too many all-rounders, with Richard Ellison and Chris Cowdrey in the side and youngsters like Mark Ealham and Vince Wells coming through," he says.
Fleming spent his 21st birthday on patrol in west Belfast, and says he grew up "mighty fast". A summer's contract with Kent brought him �3,500, and he had to work his way in to a system that often viewed his background with suspicion. As an old Etonian, from the family that founded the bank of the same name, there were plenty of cynics who felt Fleming would never give his all to the professional game. After he hit sixes with his first two scoring shots in first-class cricket, Kent stalwart Colin Page described him as a "jazz-hat cricketer" (someone who never takes the game seriously). The resulting nickname, Jazzer, still regularly raises eyebrows among those not in the know. But Fleming has gained a reputation over the years as a player and captain with a great commitment to the game, and his Kent team-mates. Satisfied His 11 one-day internationals, he freely admits, were more marked by commitment than flair, although he was part of the side that won a Sharjah tournament in 1997. "Eleven caps is more than I thought I'd get, and more than a lot of people thought I would, or should get," he says. ""I held my own and no more and there are others who did better. I got my chance and I'm very grateful for that.
Fleming is currently chairman of the players' union the PCA, and has seen a major rise in salaries for cricketers in the last few years. But, as he steps away from the day-to-day grind of county cricket, he believes the game is at a crossroads, with player wages currently exceeding what clubs can afford to pay. There was a clear example close to home on Thursday, as Kent announced they were releasing veteran wicket-keeper Paul Nixon after he refused to take a pay cut. "It isn't so long since the minimum salary for a capped player was �14,000," said Fleming. "But now I would guess the average is around �30,000, and club income is not keeping up "We're now at a crucial stage where the game may have to take stock. "I hope people involved with the game will handle the next five years maturely, but I'm confident that they will." | |
See also:  05 Sep 02 | Lancashire 19 Aug 02 | Kent 01 Aug 02 | Counties Internet links: The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Top Kent stories now: Links to more Kent stories are at the foot of the page. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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