# Franklyn Stephenson > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Franklyn_Stephenson > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Franklyn_Stephenson.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklyn_Stephenson > Source revision: 1336684940 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) West Indian cricketer Franklyn Stephenson Personal information Born (1959-04-08) 8 April 1959 (age 67) Saint James, Barbados Batting Right-handed Bowling Right-arm fast Domestic team information Years Team 1981/82 Tasmania 1981/82–1989/90 Barbados 1982–1983 Gloucestershire 1988–1991 Nottinghamshire 1991/92–1996/97 Orange Free State 1992–1995 Sussex Career statistics Competition First-class List A Matches 219 282 Runs scored 8,622 4,717 Batting average 27.99 22.67 100s/50s 12/43 2/16 Top score 166 108 Balls bowled 40,297 14,391 Wickets 792 448 Bowling average 24.26 19.91 5 wickets in innings 44 9 10 wickets in match 10 0 Best bowling 8/47 6/9 Catches/stumpings 100/– 61/– Source: CricketArchive, 8 May 2012 **Franklyn DaCosta Stephenson** (born 8 April 1959) is a former [cricketer](/source/Cricketer) from [Barbados](/source/Barbados) who played as a right handed batsman and pacer. Stephenson played as an allrounder for his native [Barbados](/source/Barbados_national_cricket_team) together with [Tasmania](/source/Tasmanian_Tigers), [Orange Free State](/source/Orange_Free_State_cricket_team), [Gloucestershire](/source/Gloucestershire_County_Cricket_Club), [Nottinghamshire](/source/Nottinghamshire_County_Cricket_Club) and [Sussex](/source/Sussex_County_Cricket_Club) in his cricketing career. As an aggressive middle-order batsman and genuinely quick pacer, he was also known for being one of the greatest exponents of the [slower ball](/source/Slower_ball).[1][2] ## Playing career Stephenson played for the [West Indies](/source/West_Indian_cricket_team) Young Cricketers team on their 1979 English tour. During 1981 he made his first-class debut, playing for [Tasmania](/source/Tasmanian_Tigers). He also started to feature, in that year, for his native [Barbados](/source/Barbados_cricket_team) and English side [Gloucestershire](/source/Gloucestershire_County_Cricket_Club).[1] During the following winter, Stephenson joined a [rebel West Indies team](/source/South_African_rebel_tours#West_Indian_tours,_1982–83_and_1983–84), led by [Lawrence Rowe](/source/Lawrence_Rowe), that twice toured South Africa. This team featured players such as [Alvin Kallicharran](/source/Alvin_Kallicharran), [Collis King](/source/Collis_King), [Colin Croft](/source/Colin_Croft) and [Ezra Moseley](/source/Ezra_Moseley). The West Indian rebels played in unofficial Tests and ODIs against the [South African national cricket team](/source/South_African_cricket_team) who, due to [apartheid](/source/Apartheid), were at the time barred from world cricket. The rebel West Indian cricketers were later handed a lifetime ban from playing cricket by the [WICB](/source/West_Indies_Cricket_Board). After those rebel tours came to an end, he began playing for South African outfit [Free State](/source/Orange_Free_State_cricket_team). As the lifetime ban was eventually lifted in 1989, Stephenson was able to play for [Barbados](/source/Barbados) in the 1989–90 [Red Stripe Cup](/source/Red_Stripe_Cup). Stephenson though never went on to play international cricket. He is regarded by some cricketing aficionados as one of if not the greatest cricketer who never played for the West Indies.[1][3] Stephenson then joined [Nottinghamshire](/source/Nottinghamshire_County_Cricket_Club) in 1988. With county cricket sides having now only one overseas player, Stephenson came to the club as a replacement for fellow all-rounders [Clive Rice](/source/Clive_Rice) and [Richard Hadlee](/source/Richard_Hadlee). Stephenson impressed in his debut season at Notts, in achieving the all-rounder's ["double"](/source/Double_(cricket)) of 1,000 runs and 100 wickets. He became only the second and last cricketer since the reduction in first-class games in 1969, after his Notts predecessor Hadlee (1981), to achieve this feat, in making 1018 runs and taking 125 wickets. He was thereafter named a [Wisden Cricketer of the Year](/source/Wisden_Cricketer_of_the_Year) in 1989 for this achievement, and was also the [Cricket Society](/source/Cricket_Society)'s leading all-rounder. Stephenson's attained the batting aspect of the double by notching a century in each innings against [Yorkshire](/source/Yorkshire_County_Cricket_Club) in Notts’ final match of the season. He also took 11 wickets in the game, which Nottinghamshire eventually lost.[1][4][5] Stephenson continued as an effective all-rounder for further three seasons with Nottinghamshire. He eventually left Notts to join [Sussex](/source/Sussex_County_Cricket_Club), where he played for another four seasons. During 1994, he scored over 750 runs and claimed a total of 67 wickets for that club.[1][3] Stephenson retired from English county cricket after 1995 and from South African domestic cricket after the 1996–97 season. Stephenson continued to earn acclaim for his notable all round feats along with his effective use of slower balls in both the First Class and List A forms of the game.[1] ## References 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Notts_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Notts_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Notts_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Notts_1-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Notts_1-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-Notts_1-5) ["Franklyn Stephenson"](https://www.trentbridge.co.uk/trentbridge/history/players/franklyn-stephenson.html). *trentbridge.co.uk*. [Nottinghamshire](/source/Nottinghamshire_County_Cricket_Club). April 2020. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-Wisden_2-0)** Harman, Jon (30 November 2020). ["Life in the slow lane: The evolution of the slower ball"](https://web.archive.org/web/20221228161356/https://wisden.com/stories/archive/life-in-the-slow-lane-the-evolution-of-the-slower-ball/amp). *wisden.com*. [Wisden](/source/Wisden). Archived from [the original](https://www.wisden.com/stories/archive/life-in-the-slow-lane-the-evolution-of-the-slower-ball/amp) on 28 December 2022. Retrieved 3 October 2022. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Cricinfo_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Cricinfo_3-1) Vaidyanathan, Siddhartha (17 June 2020). ["Sleight of hand"](http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/ci/content/story/250570.html). *cricinfo.com*. [Cricinfo](/source/Cricinfo). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["Cricketer of the Year 1989 Franklyn Stephenson"](https://www.espncricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/154440.html). *cricinfo.com*. [Wisden](/source/Wisden). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["Nottinghamshire v Yorkshire at Nottingham, 14-17 Sep 1988"](http://static.cricinfo.com/db/ARCHIVE/1980S/1988/ENG_LOCAL/CC/NOTTS_YORKS_CC_14-17SEP1988.html). v t e Rebel West Indies squad – South African rebel tours 1 Rowe (c) 2 Alleyne 3 Austin 4 Bacchus 5 Chang 6 Clarke 7 Croft 8 Greenidge 9 Julien 10 Kallicharran 11 King 12 Lynch 13 Mattis 14 Moseley 15 Murray (wk) 16 Padmore 17 Parry 18 Stephenson 19 Trotman 20 Wynter --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Franklyn Stephenson](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklyn_Stephenson) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklyn_Stephenson?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.