Former Australian wicketkeeper Lorna Beal, who was born in Melbourne, has died at the age of 96.
Lorna Beal is a right-handed batter and a wicketkeeper who started playing cricket at the age of 12. While she was 12, she joined the South Hawthorn Ladies Cricket Club and eventually became chosen to open the batting for Victoria and Australia.
As per Cricket Australia interim CEO Nick Hockley, ‘Our thoughts are with Lorna's family, as well as all the friends she made throughout her career. There's no doubt Lorna faced challenges that today's players could never dream of, including spending six weeks at sea to get to England to play the game she loved’.
‘It's pioneers like Lorna who paved the way for future generations and have made the game what it is today. One of the best in the business behind the stumps, we pay our respects to Lorna and acknowledge the legacy she has left on the game of cricket’, he added.
With regards to her professional career, Beal made her debut against New Zealand in the first Test series held between the two countries. Her final Test was played at The Oval in 1951 where Australia won their second Test in Worcester by two wickets. Overall, she has played a total of seven Tests between 1948 and 1951.
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