Geraint Jones
Encyclopedia
Geraint Owen Jones MBE (born 14 July 1976) is an England cricket
er of Welsh extraction but raised in Australia
. Until August 2006 he was the first-choice wicketkeeper for England in both Test
and One-day cricket
, but fell behind Chris Read
, Paul Nixon
, Matt Prior and Tim Ambrose
. He plays county cricket
for Kent
.
, Papua New Guinea
and moved to Australia with his parents, who were originally from Wales
, soon after he was born. He grew up in Toowoomba, Queensland
and lived in Australia until he was 22. Upon his return to Britain he trained as a pharmacist in Abergavenny
, Wales. He is married to Jen, a former canteen worker at Kent County Cricket Club, and they have one son, Rhys William.
He replaced Chris Read
as England wicketkeeper during the 2004 tour of the West Indies. Later that year, he hit a Test match
century against New Zealand, cracking fifteen fours and one six.
In the 2004/5 Winter tour of South Africa he took part in all of England's Test
and One-day
matches. Notably, he scored a quick 73 in the drawn Test match at Durban
and stumped Andrew Hall
from the last delivery of the tied One-day match in Bloemfontein
. In 2005 he made five catches and scored 71 in a defiant partnership with Paul Collingwood
to conjure a tie from the depths of 33/5 in the final of the NatWest Series against Australia
at Lord's.
A fine moment in his Test
Career was catching Michael Kasprowicz
off the bowling of Steve Harmison
to win the Edgbaston
Test in the 2005 Ashes Series by just two runs. Replays indicate, however, that since Michael Kasprowicz
only had one hand on the bat his 'glove' to the 'keeper should have been given not out. He also played a role at Trent Bridge
where he supported Andrew Flintoff
to help him reach his century whilst making a tidy 85 himself.
In the 2006 New Year's Honours List, Jones was awarded the MBE for his role in the successful Ashes series. A succession of dropped catches and missed stumpings
during his England career have caused many commentators to question whether his value to the team as a batsman is sufficient for him to hold his place against competition from more accomplished wicket-keepers such as Read and James Foster
. Until mid-2006 the England selectors maintained faith in Jones believing that he offset his mistakes with several well-timed performances with the bat. His batting form tailed off and he was dropped in favour of Chris Read
for the third Test against Pakistan in 2006. Despite this coinciding with Jones suffering a broken finger, it was stressed by David Graveney
, the Chairman of Selectors, that Jones was dropped due to his form with the bat. Ironically, Jones initially gained his place in the England side because he was perceived to be a better batsman than Read.
Jones was not awarded a 12 month central contract for 2007, although neither was his rival for the England wicket keeper place, Chris Read. Both Jones and Read were selected for the 2006-07 Ashes series
, and Read was dropped before the first Test in favour of Jones, due to Jones being perceived as a stronger batsman.
After a dreadful showing in the 2006-07 Ashes series
, including a pair in the third Test at Perth, where his second innings dismissal was an embarrassing run out by Ricky Ponting
while waiting on an lbw call, Jones was omitted from the one-day squad to play Australia and New Zealand and has yet to regain his England place in any form of the game.
, he then bagged a pair in his final two Test innings.
In the Reliance ICC Test Player Batting Rankings , he was:
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er of Welsh extraction but raised in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. Until August 2006 he was the first-choice wicketkeeper for England in both Test
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
and One-day cricket
One-day cricket
Limited overs cricket, also known as one-day cricket and in a slightly different context as List A cricket, is a version of the sport of cricket in which a match is generally completed in one day, whereas Test and first-class matches can take up to five days to complete...
, but fell behind Chris Read
Chris Read
Christopher Mark Wells Read is an English cricketer, a wicket-keeper who is the captain of Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club...
, Paul Nixon
Paul Nixon
Paul Andrew Nixon is an English cricket player who has played for Leicestershire, England, England A, MCC and Kent. He is a wicket-keeper and left-handed batsman...
, Matt Prior and Tim Ambrose
Tim Ambrose
Timothy Raymond Ambrose is an Australian born English cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman and wicket-keeper. He commenced his domestic career with Sussex in 2000, although he now plays for Warwickshire...
. He plays county cricket
County cricket
County cricket is the highest level of domestic cricket in England and Wales. For the 2010 season, see 2010 English cricket season.-First-class counties:...
for Kent
Kent County Cricket Club
Kent County Cricket Club is one of the 18 first class county county cricket clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the county of Kent...
.
Personal life
Jones was born in KundiawaKundiawa
Kundiawa is the capital of Simbu Province, Papua New Guinea, with a population of 8,147 . It lies along the Highlands Highway approximately halfway between Goroka and Mount Hagen, respectively the capitals of the Eastern Highlands and Western Highlands provinces.It is a relatively small town,...
, Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
and moved to Australia with his parents, who were originally from Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, soon after he was born. He grew up in Toowoomba, Queensland
Toowoomba, Queensland
Toowoomba is a city in Southern Queensland, Australia. It is located west of Queensland's capital city, Brisbane. With an estimated district population of 128,600, Toowoomba is Australia's second largest inland city and its largest non-capital inland city...
and lived in Australia until he was 22. Upon his return to Britain he trained as a pharmacist in Abergavenny
Abergavenny
Abergavenny , meaning Mouth of the River Gavenny, is a market town in Monmouthshire, Wales. It is located 15 miles west of Monmouth on the A40 and A465 roads, 6 miles from the English border. Originally the site of a Roman fort, Gobannium, it became a medieval walled town within the Welsh Marches...
, Wales. He is married to Jen, a former canteen worker at Kent County Cricket Club, and they have one son, Rhys William.
Career
Chris Read
Christopher Mark Wells Read is an English cricketer, a wicket-keeper who is the captain of Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club...
as England wicketkeeper during the 2004 tour of the West Indies. Later that year, he hit a Test match
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
century against New Zealand, cracking fifteen fours and one six.
In the 2004/5 Winter tour of South Africa he took part in all of England's Test
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
and One-day
One-day cricket
Limited overs cricket, also known as one-day cricket and in a slightly different context as List A cricket, is a version of the sport of cricket in which a match is generally completed in one day, whereas Test and first-class matches can take up to five days to complete...
matches. Notably, he scored a quick 73 in the drawn Test match at Durban
Durban
Durban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest city in South Africa. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism...
and stumped Andrew Hall
Andrew Hall
Andrew James Hall is a South African cricketer and a former member of the South African cricket team . He is an all-rounder who bowls fast-medium pace, and has been used as both an opening batsman and in the lower order. Prior to making it on the South African first class cricket scene he played...
from the last delivery of the tied One-day match in Bloemfontein
Bloemfontein
Bloemfontein is the capital city of the Free State Province of South Africa; and, as the judicial capital of the nation, one of South Africa's three national capitals – the other two being Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Pretoria, the administrative capital.Bloemfontein is popularly and...
. In 2005 he made five catches and scored 71 in a defiant partnership with Paul Collingwood
Paul Collingwood
Paul David Collingwood MBE is an English cricketer. He has been a regular member of the England Test side, was captain of the One Day International team 2007–2008. He is also vice-captain of his county, Durham County Cricket Club. Collingwood is a batting all-rounder, whose batting...
to conjure a tie from the depths of 33/5 in the final of the NatWest Series against Australia
Australian cricket team
The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877...
at Lord's.
A fine moment in his Test
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
Career was catching Michael Kasprowicz
Michael Kasprowicz
Michael Scott Kasprowicz is a former Australian Test cricketer. He is a right arm fast bowler, effective outfielder and useful lower order batsman, and has enjoyed a successful career both in Australia and in the English county scene since making his debut for Queensland as a seventeen year old in...
off the bowling of Steve Harmison
Steve Harmison
Stephen James Harmison MBE is an English cricketer. Primarily a fast bowler, he represented England in 63 Tests, 58 ODI's, and 2 T20's. He also plays county cricket for Durham....
to win the Edgbaston
Edgbaston Cricket Ground
Edgbaston Cricket Ground, also known as the County Ground or Edgbaston Stadium, is a cricket ground in the Edgbaston area of Birmingham, England...
Test in the 2005 Ashes Series by just two runs. Replays indicate, however, that since Michael Kasprowicz
Michael Kasprowicz
Michael Scott Kasprowicz is a former Australian Test cricketer. He is a right arm fast bowler, effective outfielder and useful lower order batsman, and has enjoyed a successful career both in Australia and in the English county scene since making his debut for Queensland as a seventeen year old in...
only had one hand on the bat his 'glove' to the 'keeper should have been given not out. He also played a role at Trent Bridge
Trent Bridge
Trent Bridge is a Test, One-day international and County cricket ground located in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England and is also the headquarters of Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club. As well as International cricket and Nottinghamshire's home games, the ground has hosted the Finals Day of...
where he supported Andrew Flintoff
Andrew Flintoff
Andrew "Freddie" Flintoff MBE is a former English cricketer who played for Lancashire County Cricket Club, England and the Indian Premier League team Chennai Super Kings. A tall fast bowler, batsman and slip fielder, Flintoff according to the ICC rankings was consistently rated amongst the top...
to help him reach his century whilst making a tidy 85 himself.
In the 2006 New Year's Honours List, Jones was awarded the MBE for his role in the successful Ashes series. A succession of dropped catches and missed stumpings
Stump (cricket)
Stump is a term used in the sport of cricket where it has three different meanings:# part of the wicket# a manner of dismissing a batsman# the end of the day's play .-Part of the wicket:...
during his England career have caused many commentators to question whether his value to the team as a batsman is sufficient for him to hold his place against competition from more accomplished wicket-keepers such as Read and James Foster
James Foster (cricketer)
James Savin Foster is an English cricketer: a wicket-keeper who played seven Tests and 11 One Day Internationals in 2001/02 and 2002/03. Foster played his club cricket at Ilford Cricket Club and then Wanstead & Snaresbrook Cricket Club...
. Until mid-2006 the England selectors maintained faith in Jones believing that he offset his mistakes with several well-timed performances with the bat. His batting form tailed off and he was dropped in favour of Chris Read
Chris Read
Christopher Mark Wells Read is an English cricketer, a wicket-keeper who is the captain of Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club...
for the third Test against Pakistan in 2006. Despite this coinciding with Jones suffering a broken finger, it was stressed by David Graveney
David Graveney
David Anthony Graveney OBE is a leading figure in English cricket and former chairman of the England Test selectors, a post he held from 1997 until 2008. Graveney attended Millfield School in Somerset....
, the Chairman of Selectors, that Jones was dropped due to his form with the bat. Ironically, Jones initially gained his place in the England side because he was perceived to be a better batsman than Read.
Jones was not awarded a 12 month central contract for 2007, although neither was his rival for the England wicket keeper place, Chris Read. Both Jones and Read were selected for the 2006-07 Ashes series
2006-07 Ashes series
The 2006–07 cricket series between Australia and England for the Ashes was played in Australia from 23 November 2006 to 5 January 2007. Australia won the series and regained the Ashes that had been lost to England in the 2005 Ashes series...
, and Read was dropped before the first Test in favour of Jones, due to Jones being perceived as a stronger batsman.
After a dreadful showing in the 2006-07 Ashes series
2006-07 Ashes series
The 2006–07 cricket series between Australia and England for the Ashes was played in Australia from 23 November 2006 to 5 January 2007. Australia won the series and regained the Ashes that had been lost to England in the 2005 Ashes series...
, including a pair in the third Test at Perth, where his second innings dismissal was an embarrassing run out by Ricky Ponting
Ricky Ponting
Ricky Thomas Ponting , nicknamed Punter, is an Australian cricketer, a former captain of the Australian cricket team between 2004 and 2011 in Test cricket and 2002 and 2011 in One Day International cricket. He is a specialist right-handed batsman, slips and close catching fielder, as well as a very...
while waiting on an lbw call, Jones was omitted from the one-day squad to play Australia and New Zealand and has yet to regain his England place in any form of the game.
Records
On 13 July 2006, during England's first Test with Pakistan, Jones became the world-record holder for most Test innings played without having scored a duck (46 innings). Jones went on to make a further five innings before failing to score in his 52nd innings. Having batted fifty one times without registering a duckDuck (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a duck refers to a batsman's dismissal for a score of zero.-Origin of the term:The term is a shortening of the term "duck's egg", the latter being used long before Test cricket began...
, he then bagged a pair in his final two Test innings.
In the Reliance ICC Test Player Batting Rankings , he was:
- Highest Rating - 478 on 20 November 2005 (v Pakistan, Faisalabad, 2nd Test)
- Highest Ranking - 48th on 20 November 2005 (v Pakistan, Faisalabad, 2nd Test)