Fast bowler Simon Jones was a member of the England squad that won the Ashes in 2005 with the Welshman emulating the achievements of his father Jeff by playing a leading role with the ball in Test cricket for England, and deservedly becoming one of Wisden’s Five Cricketers of the Year.
During the 2005 Ashes series, the Swansea-born paceman bamboozled the Australian batsmen with a potent combination of raw pace and reverse swing, and during the Third Test at Old Trafford, Simon returned the best-ever bowling figures by a Glamorgan player in Test cricket for England as he claimed 6/53. In all, Simon played in 18 Test matches between 2002 and 2005 during which he claimed 59 wickets, as well as 8 One-Day Internationals. Both his tally of wickets and his number of England appearances would have been higher had it not been for a series of injuries, including one to his knee ligaments during the opening Test of the 2002/03 Ashes series in Brisbane which forced him to return to the UK and spent time on the sidelines.
Having impressed in schools and age-group cricket, Simon had joined the Glamorgan staff during 1997 and the following year he made his first-class against Cambridge University at Fenner’s. After overcoming issues with his run-up, Simon enjoyed a fine summer with the Welsh county during 2002 when he recorded figures of 6/45 against Derbyshire at Cardiff, as well as 5/28 against Essex at Swansea, whilst in July he made his Test debut at Lord’s against India.
Simon subsequently played for Worcestershire and Hampshire, for whom he impressed in Twenty20 cricket, before returning on loan to his native county in 2011 for the T20 competition. Simon subsequently agreed new terms with the Welsh county and during 2012 Simon produced a match-winning return of 4/23 for Glamorgan in their Clydesdale Bank40 match against Durham at Colwyn Bay, whilst he also featured in the Club’s line-up in the Yorkshire Bank40 competition during 2013, with the paceman making his last appearance in the Final at Lord’s.
Since retiring, Simon has coached at Llandaff Cathedral School before securing a job in insurance and finance in the London area.
JONES, Simon Philip
Born – Morriston, 25th December 1978
Best performances for Glamorgan:
In first-class cricket – 46 v Yorkshire at Scarborough, 2001; 6/45 v Derbyshire at Sophia Gardens, 2002.
In List A cricket – 26* v Hampshire at Swansea, 2007; 4/23 v Durham at Colwyn Bay, 2012.
In T20 cricket – 1* v Essex at Chelmsford, 2011; 3/29 v Worcestershire at New Road, 2012.
| M | I | NO | RUNS | AV | 100 | 50 | CT | ST | |
| First-class | 54 | 71 | 23 | 496 | 10.33 | – | – | 12 | – |
| List A | 43 | 20 | 15 | 87 | 17.40 | – | – | 4 | – |
| T20 | 17 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1.00 | – | – | 1 | – |
| Balls | M | R | W | AV | 5wI | 10wM | |
| First-class | 7944 | 200 | 4917 | 127 | 38.72 | 5 | – |
| List A | 1504 | 12 | 1565 | 39 | 40.13 | – | – |
| T20 | 353 | 1 | 422 | 11 | 38.36 | – | – |