The captaincy was bringing Jess Jonassen down.
Although it wasn’t immediately obvious, it soon became clear to the 33-year-old allrounder that the dual head leadership roles of Queensland Fire and Brisbane Heat were having a detrimental effect on her cricket and her character.
Jonassen had led both sides for the majority of the past six seasons, with the Fire and the Heat featuring in two finals apiece during her reign.
But when sidelined by a mid-season shoulder operation, she was able to take stock and assess her suitability for the role.
After a seamless transition from the previous leadership of Kirby Short, half a dozen years as skipper had taken its toll.
It was the endless minutiae that weighed heavily on her: the extra meetings, the after-hours phone calls, the constant thinking about the team, and all the other unwritten requirements of the role.
She had given all she could give.
“All the extra little bits behind the scenes that so many people don’t realise or have an appreciation for, that was getting to the point where it was starting to weigh me down a little bit,” Jonassen told cricket.com.au.
“I thought it was detracting away from me; Jess Jonassen the cricketer and Jess Jonassen the person.
“It ended up being an easy (decision) because I knew I still wanted to be involved in the game for a number of years, and I felt like stepping away from that role was a way of doing that.
“To be honest, since I made the call, it’s just felt like a weight off the shoulders. I still provide some help or assistance wherever it’s required, but it’s freed up my mental capacity a lot.
“I really enjoyed the role. It was challenging, but it had run its course for me.”
Although Jonassen’s shoulder had been giving her some grief since the cooler winter months, the veteran spinner pushed through the first half of the Fire’s season and the Women’s Big Bash League.
But it was affecting her output and influence.
In WBBL|11, Jonassen bowled only 20 overs in seven games, comfortably the fewest she’s sent down in a single campaign. Added to that, she conceded her highest economy rate (8.35) in a single WBBL campaign and gave up 33.4 runs per wicket, the highest bowling average of her career as well.
In the WNCL, her numbers reflected those in the Big Bash. But since returning to the Queensland XI after shoulder surgery, she is averaging 23.13 with the ball post-operation compared to 32 pre-surgery.
“It’s nice to be able to trust my body again,” Jonassen said. “The shoulder was something I was dealing with from right back when pre-season started.
“The more I played and the tighter the scheduling got, the less recovery time (I had). Things weren’t really going too well.
“So (surgery) was a difficult decision, but the right one to get it done then.”
The call meant Jonassen miss Queensland’s first four matches in the new year, but the allrounder viewed it as a necessity, with stints with Yorkshire and Sunrisers Leeds coming up over what will be a busy northern summer.
But first, Jonassen has a much more pressing assignment to complete.
On Saturday, she’ll walk out in her third WNCL final with the hope of walking away victorious for the first time.
In 2016-17 and 2018-19 she featured in losses to NSW, and she has subsequently missed Queensland’s past two final appearances.
She missed last year’s loss to NSW due to WPL commitments and perhaps most frustratingly was absent for the Fire’s win over Victoria in 2020-21 – Queensland’s sole title in the competition – due to international commitments.
It’s become somewhat of an unfortunate trend for Jonassen in that while she’s played in strong sides, the silverware has avoided her.
Since winning the T20 World Cup with Australia in 2023, she has appeared in seven tournament finals (two with Brisbane Heat, three with Delhi Capitals, one each with Welsh Fire and Trinbago Knight Riders) and lost them all.
But Jonassen is primed to have a huge influence on Saturday’s clash with New South Wales at Cricket Central as she is a real possibility of opening the batting and bowling.
The veteran completed the rare feat in the Fire’s final home-and-away match against Victoria on the weekend, a match that also marked her 100th WNCL appearance.
She began with a typically miserly 2-12 from 5.2 overs, then powered Queensland’s small chase with a typically composed 41 not out.
Jonassen was elevated to the top of the order for the first match against the Vics and her 110 runs in those two innings suggest Queensland might have found the perfect person for the crucial role.
“It shocked a few people,” she said of her surprise promotion. “It started as a bit of a chat that if certain players had some niggles, it might be something. But then it turned out (the coaches said) ‘we want to go with you opening’.
“And it’s funny, I joke to a few people (that) now I’m not captain so I can’t say no.
“I’ll do whatever the team thinks is best and to be honest, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
“I felt really calm out there … for the two games that I did it, it’s come off.
“Whether I do it again or not, time will tell. But I’ll put my hand up. I was open minded to it knowing that I just had to bat and not over complicate it.”
WNCL 2025-26 standings
Team
Matches played
M
Wins
W
Losses
L
Ties
T
No results
N/R
Net Run Rate
NRR
Deductions
Ded.
Batting Bonus
Bat
Total points
PTS
1
NSW
12
11
1
0
0
1.034
0
5
49
2
QLD
12
8
4
0
0
0.459
0
4
36
3
WA
12
7
5
0
0
0.137
0
3
31
4
SA
12
7
4
0
1
-0.22
0
1
31
5
ACT
12
5
6
0
1
-0.217
0
1
23
6
TAS
12
3
9
0
0
0.002
0
3
15
7
VIC
12
0
12
0
0
-1.267
1
0
-1
Legend
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
T: Ties
N/R: No results
NRR: Net Run Rate
Ded.: Deductions
Bat: Batting Bonus
PTS: Total points
