Cricket: Fleming likely to follow in footsteps of Hadlee and Cairns

By RICHARD BOOCK

Stephen Fleming is poised to play for Nottingham in next year's English county championship.

The New Zealand captain yesterday ended weeks of speculation about his short-term future when he revealed he was close to signing with Notts, previously the home away from home for Sir Richard Hadlee and Chris Cairns.

The deal, once ratified by New Zealand Cricket, will see Fleming installed as captain of the Trent Bridge-based county for a one-season contract, following his stints with Middlesex in 2001 and with Yorkshire last year.

Fleming had initially been talking with the South London-based Surrey county, and was linked with Somerset as recently as this week.

However, he said a wish to avoid the "hustle and bustle" of London, and to commit for one, rather than two seasons, led him to turn his back on Surrey and former Black Caps' coach Steve Rixon.

"I just think it might have become a little too intense at Surrey," Fleming said. "I've never really found London conducive for relaxing and enjoying my cricket, and that certainly influenced my decision-making.

"On top of that, Notts won first-division promotion in the one-day and four-day competitions this season, so I'm looking forward to the idea of getting involved in their resurgence."

Fleming said he was happy to be asked to be captain, as he seemed to have reached a stage of his career where he found the leadership familiar and comforting.

"Not being captain isn't as easy as it sounds," he said. "I'm more comfortable holding the reins these days and if I had a choice, would probably take them every time."

The news will no doubt agree with New Zealand coach John Bracewell, who last month expressed reservations about the idea of Fleming heading for Surrey and reuniting with Rixon.

Bracewell said there were concerns that Fleming would be worn out at the glamour county, and that the reunion with Rixon could prove counter-productive in terms of his energy levels.

"There's a risk of the enjoyment factor being lost, and I guess that's something Flem has to look at pretty hard," he said at the time.

Meanwhile, NZC has refused to comment on a report that Fleming will return to New Zealand for surgery at the end of this month's test series against Bangladesh, leaving Daniel Vettori as caretaker skipper for the subsequent three one-day internationals.

The Dominion Post report suggested Vettori would be preferred as captain ahead of Chris Cairns, Craig McMillan or Jacob Oram.