Is it time to revamp the Sheffield Shield and first class cricket in Australia

Kim Evetts | July 26, 2023

Being passionate about cricket and in particular the ongoing production of quality cricketers to represent Australia I think it is time to reconsider the Sheffield Shield format.

I personally still believe Shield Cricket should be the only selection ground for future Australian test players.

My observation is the public have also lost all interest in attending Sheffield Shield matches.

Getting backsides on seats again will obviously be good for the game financially and motivating for our players and perhaps possibly less incentive for players to target franchise cricket.

First class cricket in Australia needs to be escalated back to its previous heights as the production factory for future high quality Australian Cricketers and as a spectacle of choice for supporters. (I don’t believe we should say it is too hard to achieve)

It also must be more motivating for First Class Cricketers to be playing in front of a large crowd then nobody at all.

Here are some thoughts to bring the crowds back to Shield Cricket without diminishing its value as the highest standard first-class domestic cricket competition in the world. Obviously, some of this needs more discussion and evaluation and some of this will not sit well with many I suspect)

Consider and comment on the following:

• 4-day cricket
• 90 overs per day (three 30 over sessions with points deducted for each over less than 30)
• Each team must have at least one spinner regardless of conditions and spin must bowl a minimum of 20% of the day’s overs.
• No more than two bouncers allowed per over above shoulder height (not called no balls)
• Each team bats a maximum of 90 overs and then is forced to declare, regardless of game situation.
• If batting team fails to bat the 90 over the unused overs (minus changeover time) go to the team batting next.
• Team batting next bats their allotted 90 plus any unused overs from previous innings and again is required to declare after 90 (plus extras) overs or is bowled out prior to 90 overs resulting again in unused overs going towards the next innings.
• Obviously, process is repeated for two innings each.
• If Team A bats to 90 overs and batters 5 and 8 are in when it’s time to declare they continue and start the second innings with 9,10 and 11 to follow before going back to the top of the order. (May require more thought…..everyone needs to learn to bat?)
• No new ball after 80 overs as bowlers have to learn to use the old ball and it allows spinners to get into the game and batters learn to bat against reverse swing.

The Points System

• 0.2 per wicket and 0.01 for each run scored.
• First Innings win = 2 points
• Second innings win= 5 points whether you won or lost on first innings, ensures team that lost on first innings is still incentivised to go after the game and team that won on first innings does not play boring cricket looking for a draw overall, the game is always on with plenty to play for.
• Outright win overall = a further 5 points (incentivises all teams to keep playing to the end)
• Drawn runs in an innings. The points are split between both teams.
• Drawn runs in a match, same runs scored overall - the points are spilt between both teams.
• 2 Bonus points are allocated for scoring at 4 runs or more runs per over for the innings.
• 2 bonus points are allocated for bowling a team out.

(I do accept the points system above may need to be fine-tuned)

From a player development perspective:

• Batters can still bat all day and score hundreds but be conscious they need to be scoring at a good rate to earn points.
• Batters still learn how to bat for long periods of time at the crease and learn to bat in different gears and through difficult periods.
• Batters are playing against all styles of bowling in various conditions and learn to play the short ball…skill wise and mentally, play the old and new swinging ball, bat against spin.
• Bowlers still learn their craft and how to toil for long hours and use their skills, stamina and ticker to come back from a bad first spell.
• Spinners learn to bowl on spinning wickets as well as less friendly spin wickets so learn options and control and set fields.
• Captains have to learn to think quickly as the game can potentially speed up in terms of points and overall result.

From a supporter’s point of view:

• 90 overs per day which is not new but if you want maximum points you need to be scoring runs at a decent clip and this potentially brings the bowlers and fielders into the game and more action for the supporters.
• Four runs per over is entertaining cricket.
• Bonus points create the incentive to score runs and take wickets and play entertaining cricket.
• Over four days each team will bat and bowl twice and supporters get to see their favourie players perform.
• If a team performs poorly in the first innings they are not out of the game…they can redeem themselves by outplaying the opposition in the second innings.
• There is little incentive for a dominant team to bat for two days….one is they can’t (rules don’t allow) and if they wish to play in the Shield Final they need to be playing for points….the match is always on as there is always something to be playing
• Points for the match as the match progresses can be displayed on the Ground Scoreboard so supporters can see who is in front in the match.

Conclusion:

I do appreciate many will say we already have a points incentive system and teams can play entertaining cricket if they wish.

Is this working and developing the cricketers we want and is it resonating with supporters who have so much choice now?

Do you feel inclined to go and watch Shield Cricket?

We have many high-quality first-class athletes surely, we can improve on the overall “product” without it costing a mint?

At the end of the day, we take some of the best aspects of limited overs cricket and combine this with the longer format without sacrificing the high standard of mental and physical skills of the game we all cherish and admire in the games very best players.

Finally, why do we only have 6 First Class Teams when we have some brilliant cricketers stuck in first grade (there’s only 11 players in each team) and we also have some brilliant country cricketers who do not feel they can move to the major centres because of work, family or other matters.

There must be some thought in how we can help some of these players have opportunities to play first class cricket without having to move to a Capital City.

I live in Mackay so I can’t speak for the southern States, but Mackay has a World Class Cricket Facility as does Cairns, Darwin, and Canberra.

All the best.