Every country that has been home to great cricketers has been a home of an elaborate domestic circuit. Collecting the Green Baggy is one of the most prestigious moments of any Australian cricketer’s life. What happens before is the grind in domestic cricket. Sheffield Shield is the most important tournament in Australia. Let’s learn more about it:
Australia’s domestic first-class cricket competition is called the Sheffield Shield. Teams from the six Australian states compete in the competition. The Sheffield Shield bears Lord Sheffield’s name.
History of the tournament
The 1892–93 season saw the debut of the inaugural Sheffield Shield competition. Prior to this time, there were informal cricket tournaments all around Australia. This needed a correction.
The tournament has the name of the Earl of Sheffield, a member of the 1891–1892 English foreign touring team. The Earl then gave £150 to the New South Wales Cricket Association in an effort to start a reputable intercolonial competition.
In the inaugural Sheffield Shield, just three teams competed. Victoria won the competition after defeating New South Wales, South Australia, and the other two teams in all four of their matches.
Up until the 1926–1927 season, when Queensland was included to the Sheffield Shield, the tournament persisted in a similar manner. When Western Australia took its position at the start of the 1947–48 season, it became the sixth state team to participate following World War II.
Format
Double round robin tournament format is used for game play throughout the league portion of the competition. This implies that throughout the regular season, each team will play the other twice—once at home and once away.
The top two teams in the league standings go to the final when points are awarded and this procedure is complete. The state team that won the tournament wins home field advantage in that final. In the case of a tie, the champion will be decided by the regular season’s bonus point system. The victor receives the Sheffield Shield trophy.
Sheffield Shield Teams
The Sheffield Shield features competition between six state teams, including:
- New South Wales
- Queensland
- South Australia
- Tasmania
- Victoria
- Western Australia
Sheffield Shield 2022-23: How does the points system work?
Teams receive six points for an outright victory, one point for a draw, plus 0.01 of a bonus point for every run they score over 200 in their first 100 overs (350 runs after 100 overs earns you 1.5 bonus points) and 0.1 of a bonus point for every wicket they take in their opponent’s first 100 overs (for example: 10 wickets in the first 100 overs equals 1 bonus point).
Sheffield Shield 2022-23: Who are the players to watch?
Nathan Lyon will play for NSW in the first game of the year. Marnus Labuschagne, Usman Khawaja, Travis Head, and Alex Carey from South Australia will play for the Redbacks in Queensland’s first four Shield games.
Glenn Maxwell has also indicated his intention to play two Shield matches for Victoria following the T20 World Cup. Additionally, the Vics will have access to Scott Boland for at least the first four games, and Will Pucovski is back after having his 2021–22 season cut short.
While current Test spinner Mitchell Swepson will be looking for consistent playing time ahead of next year’s eagerly anticipated trip of India, WA fast Jhye Richardson and Queensland seamer Michael Neser will be aiming for a successful start to the Shield season to press their claims for a Test recall.
The return of skipper Matthew Wade following the T20 World Cup for Tasmania’s final two games before the Big Bash break will help the team’s generally consistent lineup.
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