THE hustle and bustle of city life is a world away from the cricket field, but for the time being, it’s exactly where Chris Jones wants to be.

It was after much careful consideration that Jones made the decision to retire from first-class cricket at the end of last summer and focus on a career away from the game – but the 24-year-old insists he is only looking forwards as he embarks on a new innings.

“The last few months have been strange - since the age of around 13, cricket has been my main focus so it's very different being completely away from the game,” he said.

Jones hails from Poole in Dorset and graduated through the club’s academy before being awarded a professional contract in 2009.

He made his first class debut at the end of 2010 and the following season hit his maiden half-century in the championship against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge.

He continued: “Since the end of the season I have been in London doing an internship and attending interviews.

“It's been a world away from the cricket field but I've found the experience very worthwhile.

“It was obviously a tough decision, there are a number of things that professional sport gives you that you can't recreate in other areas of life - the feeling of scoring a hundred, winning a close match, the camaraderie with your teammates and the dressing room environment being a few examples.

“But, I realised that cricket wasn't going to be my long-term future and I have aspirations outside of cricket that led me to make the decision.”

The decision-making process required elements of parental guidance and Jones spent many an hour talking things over with his father.

Whether it’s opening the batting or making life choices, Jones isn’t one to be rash or overhasty and this was a decision subject to much intense scrutiny.

To say he had ‘fallen out of love with the game’ would be a step too far – but the academy graduate admits that playing cricket for a living ‘reduced its appeal’ somewhat.

It hasn’t, however, tarnished the memories collected along the way nor has it driven him away from the game for good.

“As I have said before it had been on the cards for a while and I spoke to a number of players about it.

“I spoke most to my dad though, he has been very influential in my cricket and I spent many an hour discussing the decision with him on the phone,” he says.

“Everybody was very supportive and understanding of my reasons for leaving the game.

“I think when you do anything as a job its complexion changes - I love sport and to see sport as a job reduced its appeal.

“Now this isn't the case I'm sure I'll be involved in cricket, and other sports to a certain degree, but I haven't really had a chance to think about how and when yet.

“The whole experience has been amazing and I'll definitely miss the guys a lot.

“But if I were to pick out a single experience it would be the Champions League in India.

“It was an amazing experience both on and off the field - if I am honest I only packed for a few days as I didn't expect us to make it out of the qualifying tournament, so getting to the semi final was an amazing achievement and something I will always remember.”

The 24-year-old graduated from Durham University with a first-class honours degree in Economics in June 2013, in the same week he scored his maiden first-class century against Australia at Taunton – and it was these academic achievements that helped ease any doubts he may have had about a career away from the middle.

“It gave me confidence that I would be able to do a job that interested and stimulated me and thus meant that I didn't feel I needed to succeed in cricket to be successful in life.

“In my opinion, this is the real value a degree gives a young sportsperson, the option to choose.

“But, it didn't make the decision any easier in terms of what I will miss.”

The numbers theme remains an ever-present with Jones, whose career will now deal in currency rather than runs – but even that will be on hold until September while the former Richard Huish College student heads off on his travels.

“After Christmas I am going to go away for three months with my girlfriend, Rebecca, to South East Asia and Australasia which I am very excited about.

“We will then return to the UK before hopefully going away again to see some more of the world before starting my second career next September.”

The very fact that Jones, a cricketer of immense promise, believes his long-term future lies in the city, says a lot about the potential of his career away from the game.

If Jones can apply the same level of class and composure to his new career, as he did at the crease, he’ll have no problems mixing it with the city slickers.