Australian Domestic Cricket

[SpitfiresKent]

Just switching through the live streams of the Sheffield shield matches and the coverage is very good (one of the matches even had commentary!) I wish we had this sort of coverage for the county championship.

 

[SpitfiresKent]

I love how these Sheffield shield matches are being played at the big venues and there's literally no one watching. Wouldn't it be better if they were played at smaller grounds?

 

[alexczarn]

The new Sheild points system is weird.

 

[cricketmad09]

I love how these Sheffield shield matches are being played at the big venues and there's literally no one watching. Wouldn't it be better if they were played at smaller grounds?

Sheffield Shield isn't about the crowds. Nobody is going to go regardless of where it is at. So they keep it at the bigger grounds so the players get to use to playing in those conditions. However NSW are playing a few matches away from SCG and as of next season Victoria might be switching to Junction Oval as a permanent venue so they don't have to worry about fixturing around the AFL season.

 

[Yuvi.]

Sean Abbott returns to first-class cricket with a career-best. 6 for 9 now against Queensland

 

[Spickery]

Ed Cowan is certainly not doing himself any harm in earning a Test recall. He has scored four centuries so far in the Sheffield Shield at an average of about 70 this year. I would have Cowan in the Australian Test team for Chris Rogers, as I believe Cowan has figured out how to be more attacking with the bat to enable him to make big scores more often.

Ben Hilfenhaus also bowled very for well Tasmania in the same match against South Australia taking 5 for 11 off 14 overs. Hilfenhaus has always been on the fringes of selection for a spot in the Australian Test team.

 

[angryangy]

They need a 3 and it'd be handy if they could put someone at 3 who isn't on debut and might be a bit more sure about his game. That's kinda what Watson is doing for them now, but he's not really doing it very well. While Burns could bat up the order, it hasn't helped any new player yet. Plus it means they have someone who actually wants to field at short leg.

 

[aussie1st]

Finally Shield cricket back again. Be good seeing how guys like Silk and Bird go after their successful Big Bash stints.

 

[War]

Nevill ready to step out of Haddin's shadow | cricket.com.au

 

[War]

Our Sheffield Shield team of the season | cricket.com.au


Our Sheffield Shield team of the season
Martin Smith

The best performed players of the Sheffield Shield season ahead of the final in Hobart

After 30 matches at 12 venues in seven states and territories, the Sheffield Shield season will reach its climax when Victoria host Western Australia in the final in Hobart, starting on Saturday.

Ahead of the decider, we've looked back at the summer and crunched the numbers in an attempt to pick out the best performers from the season so far.

Unsurprisingly, the team is dominated by the Warriors and the Bushrangers, with seven of our XI set to play the final at Blundstone Arena.

So did we get it right? Scroll through our XI and decide for yourself.

Ed Cowan (Tasmania)
Matches: 9 | Runs: 815 | 100s: 4 | 50s: 2 | Ave: 47.94 | HS: 158

Despite an impressive late run from WA opener Cameron Bancroft, we've given Ed Cowan the nod in our team on the back of a prolific first half of the season. The former Test opener posted four centuries in five matches before the break for the Big Bash League, including emotional twin centuries against South Australia in the first match since the passing of his friend Phillip Hughes. Cowan was far less effective in the second half of the season as he weighed up his future, before he made the shock announcement that he was leaving the Tigers to move back to Sydney for family reasons.

Michael Klinger (Western Australia)
Matches: 10 | Runs: 983 | 100s: 4 | 50s: 3 | Ave: 61.43 | HS: 190

The move west from South Australia paid off for Klinger, who has been a key part of WA's dominant top order this season. Having put in some good performances in the Matador Cup in October, the veteran started the Shield campaign with an unbeaten half-century against Tasmania and never looked back. One of his strengths has been his ability to cash in when set; three of his four centuries this season have been innings of more than 150. He's spent the summer batting at No.3, but has experience as an opener so we've elevated him to the top of the order in our team.

Marcus Stoinis (Victoria)
Matches: 9 | Runs: 730 | 100s: 0 | 50s: 9 | Ave: 52.14 | HS: 99
Wickets: 7 | Ave: 35.14 | BB: 3-27

Despite not scoring a century this season, Stoinis has been remarkably consistent in what has been a breakout summer for the highly-rated allrounder. The right-hander passed 50 nine times in 15 innings batting in the top three and also took seven wickets with his medium-pacers. The only slight disappointment for Stoinis will be the absence of his second first-class century; his highest score for the season was an innings of 99 in Victoria's win over WA in Perth in December. The 25-year-old gets into the side just ahead of versatile Queensland and Test batsman Joe Burns, who had 793 runs at 52.86 with two centuries and four fifties.

Adam Voges (c) (Western Australia)Matches 10 | Runs 1215 | 100s: 5 | 50s: 5 | Ave: 101.25 | HS 249

It's been a record-breaking summer for the WA skipper, who scored the most runs by a Western Australian in asingle season and the eighth most of all time, with the final still to come. The veteran right-hander has put himself in contention for Australia's winter tours of the West Indies and England with the highlight of his summer an innings of 249 against South Australia in Adelaide. That performance was part of a remarkably consistent streak in the second half of the season that saw him peel off scores of 101, 22*, 249, 9, 87, 54*, 42, 59 and 83 after the BBL break.

Shaun Marsh (Western Australia)
Matches: 10 | Runs: 700 | 100s: 3 | 50s: 2 | Ave: 70.00 | HS: 164*

Despite being selected for three of Australia's four Tests against India, Marsh managed to play all 10 of WA's matches this season and posted five scores above 50 from 15 innings. Having often benefitted from the platform laid by Klinger and Voges, his best performance of thecompetition came on one of the rare occasions the top order failed to fire. With the Warriors 4-105 against Queensland in Brisbane, the left-hander scored an unbeaten 164 and shared a 304-run partnership with Sam Whiteman that helped set up an outright victory.

Callum Ferguson (South Australia)
Matches: 10 | Runs 836 | 100s: 4 | 50s: 3 | Ave: 52.25 | HS: 140

A shining light in a disappointing campaign for South Australia, Ferguson makes it into our top six just ahead of Victoria’s Peter Handscomb, who passed 50 six times from 11 innings this season. Ferguson finished the summer as the competition's third highest run-scorer and scored four centuries from 10 matches, the highlight of which was an unbeaten 117 on the final day in Glenelg as the Redbacks chased down 289 for victory against Tasmania.

Peter Nevill (New South Wales)
Matches: 10 | Runs: 764 | 100s: 2 | 50s: 3 | Ave: 76.40 | HS: 235*
Catches: 30 | Stumpings: 4

A batting average of 63 for the season would have normally been good enough for Matthew Wade to the get the gloves in our best XI, but it's hard to go past Blues keeper Peter Nevill. Having sat on the sidelines with the Renegades in the BBL, Nevill returned to Shield cricket refreshed to score an unbeaten double-century against Tasmania, just the second NSW wicketkeeper to reach 200. He followed it up with another hundred against Western Australia and he also had a tidy season behind the stumps, completing 34 dismissals. Queensland’s Chris Hartley had the most dismissals in the competition with 41.

Peter Siddle (Victoria)
Matches: 6 | Wickets: 25 | 5WI: 2 | Ave: 17.32 | BB: 8-54

Left out of Australia’s Test side during the summer, Siddle ensured he remained in the National Selection Panel’s thinking with some excellent performances for the Bushrangers. His two five-wicket hauls for the season came against South Australia, including career-best figures of 8-54 in Glenelg, while his strike rate of 40.5 is the best of the competition’s leading wicket-takers. Siddle gets the nod in our team just ahead of Queensland captain James Hopes, who took 30 wickets for the season from nine matches.

Nathan Rimmington (Western Australia)
Matches: 9 | Wickets: 32 | 5WI: 2 | Ave: 23.31 | BB: 5-27

Western Australia's bowling attack was hit hard by injuries this season, but a constant for them was 32-year-old Nathan Rimmington. Having achieved most of his success at state level in limited overs cricket, the skiddy right-armer was a consistent performer for the Warriors in the Shield this season, taking at least three wickets in everymatch he played as they finished second on the ladder.

Andrew Fekete (Tasmania)
Matches: 10 | Wickets: 37 | 5WI: 2 | Ave: 24.10 | BB: 5-66

Like Rimmington for the Warriors, Andrew Fekete has been a model of consistency for Tasmania. A 29-year-old latecomer to state cricket with just six first-class games under his belt before the season began, the right-armer took 5-80 in the first match of the competition and has continued to be a standout performer in a disappointing summer for the Tigers, finishing second wicket-taker for the competition with 37.

Fawad Ahmed (Victoria)
Matches: 10 | Wickets: 40 | 5WI: 2 | Ave: 26.25 | BB: 5-32

The leading wicket-taker for the season, Victorian leg-spinner Fawad Ahmed takes the slow bowling duties in our team just ahead of Ashton Agar and Steve O'Keefe, who both had impressive summers. With Australia likely to take two spinners for the tour of the West Indies in May and June, and possibly for the Ashes later in the year, Fawad did his chances of a Test debut no harm with a 40-wicket season as he thrived on the slow wicket in Alice Springs, Victoria's home away

 

[SpitfiresKent]

^Crikey! Look at that average from Voges

 

[alexczarn]

Voges and Klinger need to travel as backup for the next tours. I wouldn't mind Klinger being called up to open after Rogers retires.

 

[aussie1st]

Another 100 for Voges in the final, hard to ignore him for the Ashes and offers a part time bowling option. Ahmed probably booked himself a ticket as well, selectors have all they need to unleash him now.

 

[IanG]

I love how these Sheffield shield matches are being played at the big venues and there's literally no one watching. Wouldn't it be better if they were played at smaller grounds?

I believe so but there's something in the players association agreement and that respective state associations that have agreements with the major venues to have x number of games. Believe you me I'd love to see more matches takes out of the big smoke. New South Wales played a match in my home town but because of circumstances I wasn't able to go but that's another story.

 

[cricketmad09]

I love how these Sheffield shield matches are being played at the big venues and there's literally no one watching. Wouldn't it be better if they were played at smaller grounds?

One reason why they like to play the matches at the bigger grounds is because they're trying to prepare players for test cricket, thus they want them playing at Test venues, so these guys actually get the home ground advantage. It'd seem a bit silly for a guy to play a test match at MCG for e.g and his opponents have played there more than him.