Jean Stonell, a dual international from Wellington, opened the batting for New Zealand in four Test matches over a ten year span.
Born 30th December 1928 in Wellington, Jean Stonell made her debut for Wellington on Christmas Day 1946 as a seventeen year old, batting way down the order. A taste of international cricket in March 1949 when the touring England team played Wellington in a tour game. Coming in to bat at number ten, Jean was not out 0.
By the following season she is opening the batting with Test opener Billie Fulford. It suited the young batter and she became a reliable rock at the top of the order for Wellington. So much so that she was selected to play in the one off Test match against Australia in January 1957 in Adelaide. She scored eight runs in both innings.
It was another four years before Jean played another Test, this time in Dunedin against Australia, making 18 and 23.
In 1966 Jean was part of Trish McKelvey’s team to tour England where she played in two of the Tests, making her highest Test score of 47 at Edgbaston.
In the best part of a decade, Jean played just four Tests. Her first class career from 1946/7 to 1967/8. Somewhere in that time she also represented New Zealand at basketball. A dual international and a White Ferns pioneer.