Gary Stead
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 New Zealand (NZ) |
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| Batting style | Right-hand bat | |
| Bowling type | Legbreak | |
| Tests | First-class | |
| Matches | 5 | 96 |
| Runs scored | 278 | 4780 |
| Batting average | 34.75 | 32.51 |
| 100s/50s | 0/2 | 10/22 |
| Top score | 78 | 190 |
| Balls bowled | 6 | 1050 |
| Wickets | - | 8 |
| Bowling average | - | 73.37 |
| 5 wickets in innings | - | 0 |
| 10 wickets in match | - | 0 |
| Best bowling | - | 4/58 |
| Catches/stumpings | 2/- | 46/- |
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Test debut: 11 March 1999 |
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Gary Raymond Stead (born January 9, 1972, Christchurch, Canterbury) is a New Zealand cricketer who played in 5 Tests in 1999.
An top-order batsman, Stead played five Tests in nine months in 1999, averaging 34.75 and never being dismissed in single figures. Against South Africa he showed his great character, digging in and grinding out runs, but after two mediocre performances against West Indies he was dropped. His call-up had come after eight years of first-class cricket with Canterbury, and he led them for five seasons from 1998-99 in a period in which they struggled.
Stead's selection as a New Zealand test cricketer was enthusiastically welcomed by his supporters club, the Gary Stead Fan Club (GSFC). The club boasts a small number of formal members throughout New Zealand and abroad. Speaking during Stead's second test, against South Africa at the Basin Reserve in March 1999, Club President Reuben Levermore said "We support Gary because he embodies everything that the New Zealand team has been lacking during much of the 1990s. He shows that grit and determination the team really needs".
