Player Profile of Stephen Fleming
Name: Stephen Paul Fleming
Born: Christchurch, 1 April 1973
Team: Captain, New Zealand
Bats: Left-hand
Provincial Side: Wellington
Stephen Fleming’s obvious talent as a batsman saw
him marked out as a player for the future from a young
age. He excelled from the beginning in representative
and club cricket, competing well above his age-group
as a schoolboy in Christchurch. In 1994, on the strength
of his performances for youth teams and his first few
games for Canterbury, Fleming earned Test selection
with very little first-class cricket to his name. Nonetheless,
he cemented his position in the New Zealand team almost
immediately, and in fact it was some years before Fleming
again had the opportunity to play for Canterbury.
Similarly, Fleming had little captaincy experience when
he was chosen to skipper the national side, replacing
controversial captain Lee Germon in early 1997. Fleming
had led a national youth side to a series win against
Australia a few years earlier but had never captained
Canterbury; moreover he was just 23 years of age at
the time and easily New Zealand’s youngest captain.
Still, Fleming’s good head for cricket and calm,
mature demeanour recommended him for the role, and his
appointment – along with that of coach Steve Rixon
and manager John Graham - was one of several key executive
decisions taken at that time which helped to turn around
the fortunes of a struggling New Zealand team.
Fleming’s beginnings as captain brought mixed results:
he had some successes against England and Zimbabwe,
but the team floundered in Australia the next season
before bouncing back to defeat Zimbabwe 2-0 in two tests
at home and share a short one-day series with Australia.
Fleming scored two one-day centuries during the summer,
both against Australia, both unbeaten and both –
as so often, when Fleming plays well – proved match-winning.
Overall, Fleming’s captaincy, aided by reforms
introduced by the new coach-management team, seemed
to be working and the 1998-1999 season began with perhaps
the greatest success yet of Fleming’s captaincy,
a 1-0 Test series win against India.
Fleming missed most of the remainder of the home season
- including the Test series against South Africa - with
a groin injury, the only occasion when Fleming has missed
a Test match since becoming captain. Despite moderate
enthusiasm for his stand-in, Dion Nash, whose aggression
and on-field communication were felt by some to be more
appropriate to the one-day game than Fleming’s
captaincy style, Fleming’s return to the role was
routine. New Zealand went on to lose the one-day series,
but were soon focussed on preparations for the 1999
World Cup.
Three months spent in England in mid-1999 saw the New
Zealand team, and Fleming as captain, reach new levels.
The Black Caps played well, including an unexpected
win against Australia, to reach the World Cup semi-finals.
Greater success followed during the four Tests against
England, when New Zealand secured just their second
series victory in England, including first-ever wins
at Lord’s and the Oval. It was, perhaps, Fleming’s
greatest victory to date. His captaincy during the series
attracted warm praise and his contributions with the
bat included a vital 66 not out in the fourth Test.
The Black Caps’ achievement must have been clear
to Fleming, who had been part of New Zealand’s
lacklustre tour in 1994; he grinned broadly when lifting
the Cornhill trophy in 1999. Importantly, the Black
Caps were able to reinforce their new stature by whitewashing
the West Indies that summer.
New Zealand’s African tour, mid-way through 2000,
brought several milestones for Fleming and his team.
Despite significant injury problems, they defeated Zimbabwe
in two Test matches, in which Fleming – still only
twenty-seven years of age - equalled and then passed
Geoff Howarth’s record of most wins as New Zealand
Test captain. Shortly afterwards, the Black Caps became
the winners of the inaugural ICC Knock Out trophy and
the first New Zealand cricket team to win an international
tournament. That victory is remembered, above all, for
Cairns’ unbeaten century in the final match, but
also represented a tremendous achievement for Fleming’s
one-day captaincy.
Unfortunately, the injury-riddled New Zealand side went
on to lose heavily in South Africa. His tour diary,
Cricketing Safari, chronicled a captain’s agony.
There was an additional personal disappointment for
Fleming, who was dismissed on 99 during the Bloemfontein
Test, narrowly failing to improve the poor “conversion
rate” of fifties-to-hundreds that had become a
sore point with Fleming and his critics. Fleming - though
relatively consistent, with a Test average in the thirties
- was still failing to perform to the fullest of his
abilities: fluid strokeplay leading to big scores.
The 2000-2001 home season was the low-point of Fleming’s
career as captain. The Black Caps could not defeat Zimbabwe
in the sole Test, lost the one-day series and another
to Sri Lanka. Fleming, distraught, responded by offering
to stand down as captain. He was retained, however,
and New Zealand’s performances at last began to
improve with the arrival of the Pakistanis. The Black
Caps managed a 3-2 victory in the one-dayers and drew
the Test series. Fleming’s and the selectors’
perseverance had been vindicated and injuries, at any
rate, were identified as the overwhelming cause of New
Zealand’s failures. Interestingly, it was at this
time that Fleming decided to take over from the coach
a greater share of leadership and responsibility within
the team structure, along the Australian model. That
move seems to have aided Fleming’s ascent to rank
amongst the most senior and best-respected captains
in world cricket.
Fleming’s next great achievements came in Australia
during the summer of 2001-2002. First he led New Zealand
to a close, hard-fought draw in three Tests against
the rampant Australians. It was a significant turnaround
for the Black Caps, who had lost 3-0 to Australia two
years before. After crushing Bangladesh, the Black Caps
returned in the new year and humiliated the hosts by
keeping Australia out of the VB Series final. South
Africa took the trophy, but with Fleming’s astute
captaincy and careful homework on the Australian players,
New Zealand showed that they could beat the champions
of one-day cricket on their home soil.
The Third Test at Perth in November, however, had been
particularly special for Fleming, who scored his long-awaited
and desperately-desired second Test century. It was
probably, in part, the dividend of a winter spent playing
county cricket for Middlesex; before leaving for England,
Fleming had stated his intent to use the more relaxed
environment – without the pressures of captaincy
– to overcome his three-figure demon. But, above
all, his Perth century was an indication of what Fleming
– not merely captain but also a genuine contender
to be the country’s best batsman – should
be achieving. He was able to follow it up with a century
– and a first-ever Test series win - in the West
Indies the next year. By now, the critics were silenced
and Stephen Fleming was well on the way to achieving
his potential both as a captain and as a batsman.
2002 was a disrupted year, with a bombing outside the
team’s Karachi hotel truncating the Pakistan tour
and, later, a protracted contractual dispute between
NZC and the Players Association putting the domestic
season put on hold. Fleming’s leadership skills
now proved useful in a new context, helping to resolve
the dispute before it impinged on New Zealand’s
international commitments. In any case, the Black Caps
suffered little from lost match practice when the touring
Indians struggled on pitches that attracted considerable
criticism. New Zealand took the Test series 2-0 and
won four consecutive games in the one day series first
up.
Fleming had set himself some rigorous personal objectives
for the summer. Having identified problems with his
technique that had been inhibiting his strokeplay and
strike rate, he signalled his intent to remedy them.
At the same time, Fleming stepped into the one-day opening
slot, a position New Zealand had found notoriously difficult
to fill effectively, on a permanent basis. After a poor
start to the series and some extra practice with Wellington,
Fleming narrowly missed out on a half-century in Queenstown,
then struck a well-played 60 not out in the final match
to seal the victory. New Zealand won the series and
Fleming’s program appeared to be working.
Confirmation came during the 2003 World Cup in South
Africa. Fleming commenced well, scoring a century in
a practice match and looked in good touch before being
out for 25 against the West Indies. His greatest moment,
however, and certainly the greatest innings of his one-day
career to date came in New Zealand’s pool match
against South Africa. Needing a win to have any chance
of progressing in the competition, the Black Caps’
cause seemed hopeless when the hosts posted in excess
of 300, but a breathtaking 134 not out from Fleming
– an almost faultless innings in which he showed
an uncanny ability to pick gaps and run the ball to
the fence – enabled New Zealand to reach their
rain-shortened target and, ultimately, a Super Six spot.
Immediately the media came alive with praise not only
for Fleming as captain – he had already been identified
by many as the best in the tournament – but also
as a batsman. Perhaps equally importantly, Fleming proved
that his Wanderers hundred was not an aberration, backing
up with useful, well struck innings against Bangladesh
and Zimbabwe. Fleming, for once, was openly pleased
with his form and may have know best when he said, smiling,
“I had a feeling it’s my time as a player
now.”
Fleming is a thoughtful and resourceful captain who
works well with his bowlers and continually considers
new ideas - whether innovative field placements, different
perspectives, or even lessons taken from other sports.
He had notable success setting traps for the best Australian
batsman in 2001-2002 and generally makes astute use
of often-imperfect bowling options. Now well-settled
in the captaincy, Fleming’s skill and the strength
of his leadership is widely acknowledged by his team
mates and others. While quick to give praise where it
is deserved, Fleming makes no excuses for his team,
nor his own form, and will put in extra effort to attempt
to resolve any problems.
As a batsman, the “tall, elegant left-hander”
- as Fleming is so often called - is arguably New Zealand’s
most correct and effective stroke-maker. Perhaps his
trademark shot is the straight drive for four, which
he plays with unparalleled flair. When in form, he is
a prolific scorer of boundaries. Fleming tends to play
primarily flat, safe shots but appears increasingly
willing to hit over the field in the shorter form of
the game. Fleming passed the 5,000 one-day run mark
against India and is New Zealand’s second-highest
run scorer in ODIs.
Fleming’s other important contribution is in
his usual fielding position at first slip. With large,
safe hands he misses few chances and has taken a record
number of catches for New Zealand.
Fleming's Statistics from CricInfo
Profile by Kit, 10 March 2003
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