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The 36-year-old is a two-time winner
of the LV= County Championship with
the Club having lifted the trophy in both
2005 and 2010, as well as being part of
the promotion winning campaigns of 2004
and 2007.
Franks, who was born in Mansfield, made
his Nottinghamshire debut in 1996, was
capped by the county in 1999, represented
England in 2000 and was bestowed a
benefit year in 2007.
He will continue to captain the Club’s
Second XI having led them to the
Championship title last summer, for the
first time since 1985.
“It’s about closing a chapter and moving
into a new one,” said Franks.
“Playing for Nottinghamshire in first class
cricket has meant an enormous amount to
me.The shirt and the cap really matter.
“Now the work we’re doing with the young
players in the Academy team and Second
XI is going from strength-to-strength and
will continue to do so.
“My responsibility is to make them aware
of what it takes to be the next LukeWood,
Brett Hutton or Jake Ball.”
Franks retires having taken 524 first class
wickets, in 215 matches, at an average of
33, with 11 five-wicket hauls and career-
best figures of 7-56 against Middlesex at
Lord’s in 2000.
In his first full season in 1997 he took
the first Nottinghamshire hat-trick for a
decade, becoming the youngest bowler in
the Club’s history to achieve the feat by
dismissingTrevor Penney, Dougie Brown
and GraemeWelch againstWarwickshire
atTrent Bridge.
With the bat, he has scored 7,185
first class runs at an average of 28
with four hundreds and 41 fifties,
including a resourceful stint opening the
batting during the run-in to the 2010
Championship success.
Nottinghamshire Director of Cricket Mick
Newell paid tribute to Franks’ impact,
both on and off the field.
“He’s made a huge contribution over the
time he’s been here,” said Newell.
“For many years he’s been a stalwart of
the first team and has made a terrific
contribution with ball and bat.
“He’s played a major role in some of our
best team performances and some of our
best seasons as well.
“He was our leading bowler from a very
young age and that’s a terrific indictment
of the quality of bowler he was.”
Franks has retired the number eight squad
number and passed it to Stuart Broad.
Congratulations to Paul from everybody at
Trent Bridge on an outstanding career in
the first class game.
Nottinghamshire
stalwart Paul Franks
has retired from the
first class game,
having taken 792
wickets for his home
county over a career
spanning 19 years.
Club legend Franks
announces first
class retirement