The Sheffield Shield final is set for a nail-biting finish with history to be made either way as South Australia have been set 270 for the title.
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The hosts will start their run chase at 11:05am AEDT/10:35am local time on Saturday morning at Karen Rolton Oval after Queensland’s impressive fight back in the third innings of the match ended with just five minutes remaining on day three.
Marnus Labuschagne’s were bowled out for 445 in their second dig courtesy of centuries to Jack Clayton and Jack Wildermuth, and after being sent into bat on day one and knocked over for just 95, they have managed to set South Australia a record run chase.
Victoria’s 2/239 to defeat New South Wales in the 1991 decider at the MCG is the current record holder, and perhaps the South Australians will take solace in the fact that Jamie Siddon’s unbeaten century guided the Victorians home on that occasion as he was the skipper the last time South Australia won the Shield, 29 years ago.
But the Queenslanders will also be looking to usurp a record set by that Victorian side, with the first innings deficit of 104 they overcame in that final setting the landmark for biggest comeback in a Shield final.
Queensland will blow that number out of the water if their bowlers fire, as they trailed by 176 after South Australia posted 271 in their first innings.
Despite the bowlers undoubtedly waking up with weary legs on Saturday morning, Nathan McSweeney’s side should be buoyed by how batting has got easier as the game has progressed.
The Queenslanders managed to pile on 224 runs for their final four wickets on Friday with a half-century from Mark Steketee providing vital support to Wildermuth as they kept South Australia in the field for 136.2 overs in the third innings of the match.
Brendan Doggett shone with the best-ever haul in a Shield final, finishing with 11/140 after snaring a second a bag of five for the game in the second innings, but the ball hardly moved off the straight yesterday, which bodes well for the likes of first innings centurion Jake Lehmann and Australian Test gloveman Alex Carey who are set to be the key for the hosts in the middle order.
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“It’s simple isn’t it,” South Australian spinner Ben Manenti said after play on day three.
“We’ve got 270 to chase and the Shield’s ours.
“It won’t be easy but we’ve seen this afternoon it’s still a beautiful cricket wicket to bat on.
“We’ll nut it out in the morning, how we’re going to go about it and hopefully this time tomorrow night we have a Shield in our hands, or have a few to chase the next day.
“It’s a Shield final, it was never going to be over in two days and us have the choccies.
“It was always going to be a grind, there’s always a twist and a turn especially in the final.”
If the run chase is successful, it will be the first time South Australia have won the Shield and the one-day crown in the same season, after they defeated Victoria at the Adelaide Oval earlier this month.
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