Why Keeping Quiet is a must-read for all-sports fans

Paul Nixon (above), who enjoyed a distinguished career as a wicketkeeper and batsman (and occasional bowler) for Cumberland, Leicestershire, Kent, Delhi Giants and England, was no ordinary cricketer.

And his autobiography, Keeping Quiet, produced in association with Jon Colman, is no ordinary book.

As anyone with the fortune and privilege to witness “Nico” in action will confirm, there is a certain irony in the title.

Whenever he took to the field, before his playing career ended in 2011, he could never be described as a shy and retiring type. Indeed, he was one of the most vociferous English players of the modern era, perhaps of any era.

For one of the all-time cricket legends to pen a foreword to the book would be regarded as a great honour. The fact that TWO – Steve Waugh and Sir Vivian Richards – have chosen to do so is an indication of the respect with which Nixon is held throughout the world game.

Both of those giants recognised, from an early stage in their careers, the importance of mental fortitude at the highest levels and used this knowledge as a springboard for their achievements.

As Nixon acknowledges, he took somewhat longer to come to terms with such demands, but once doing so, he was successful in prolonging his career well beyond the standard retirement age.

The pride with which he recounts the 2006-07 tour of Australia, where he made his international debut (at the age of 35!) and helped to inspire England to a remarkable one-day tournament victory, shines vividly throughout every word of that particular account.

As a cricketer, Nixon was renowned for his passion, commitment and honesty. It is a delight to report that this book bears the same positive traits.

Throughout his career, he played hard and by his own admission, partied even harder.

This led to many adventures, many of which may have seemed amusing at the time (and perhaps even more so in hindsight), but also others which were downright scary.

He reaches the conclusion that a guardian angel is watching over him. The evidence presented to back this idea certainly gives pause for thought.

The author featured heavily in Leicestershire’s County Championship triumphs of 1996 and 1998, together with the three T20 titles in 2004, 2006 and 2011, and gives his role in those successes the attention it richly deserves.

Lesser authors may have focused on them exclusively. But Nixon also covers the darker sides of his two spells at Grace Road – from the divided dressing-room which blighted his early years in county cricket through to the bitter political in-fighting which prompted a recent player exodus and has weakened the county’s performance at four-day level for several seasons.

In addition, he tackles, in typically-direct style, some of the global challenges currently faced by the game. As a close friend of the late Hansie Cronje, and a leading player in the equally ill-fated Indian Cricket League, Nixon was already well-acquainted with the damage inflicted by match-fixing scandals.  So it is little surprise that an attempt by an “acquaintance” offering a £5million bribe, to persuade him to rig a 2010 T20 game at Durham proved to be unsuccessful.

Many faced with such a massive temptation may well have succumbed. It is a tribute to Nixon’s character, evident in his report of this episode, that the question of him doing so never even arises.

Another disquieting note occurs when a snide tabloid comment by an ex-England colleague, concerning Nixon’s role in an alleged incident during the 2011 T20 final, was picked up by the England and Wales Cricket Board and led to an official letter of censure being sent to both player and county.

Nixon, who denies the incident even occurred, is rightly aggrieved at never being given the chance to present, let alone defend, his case at any official hearing. However the tale illustrates to a disturbing degree the craven subservience of the national cricketing powers-that-be to the demands of the media, and in particular, one (lately somewhat-discredited) area of it.

As throughout much of its history, Leicestershire are enduring some difficult times at present. But many fans will hope that Nixon’s service will continue for many years – not only as a coach and mentor to the present squad. In the long-term, Nixon is ideally suited for a community/club ambassador role, similar to that which Alan Birchenall has performed with such distinction for those Foxes on the other side of Aylestone Road.

He has been, over many years a credit to both his native Cumbria and his adopted city and county. Long may he continue to be so!

Keeping Quiet, published by The History Press, is now available at all quality bookshops and also via http://www.amazon.co.uk. An e-book version for Amazon Kindle is available at http://ow.ly/c4ZqC

Colin Hall’s first e-book, We Were The Quarry, will be published by LeicesterVoice in August 2012.