FIASCO FIELD
Venue gets a tick despite shield showpiece shame
ALLAN Border Field has been given the tick of approval from Cricket Australia as a suitable first-class venue despite Friday’s fiasco that saw day one of the Sheffield Shield final abandoned in blazing sunshine.
Weeks of bad weather in Brisbane left the outfield soaked and poor drainage left the umpires with no choice but to deem the surface unsatisfactory. Queensland coach Wade Seccombe labelled the incident as “not a good look for cricket”, but despite the shambolic events CA has no issues with the ground.
Play was also halted yesterday morning because of poor visibility when dark clouds rolled in, with no floodlights available.
“Allan Border Field meets the criteria required by Cricket Australia to host the JLT Sheffield Shield final,” CA’s head of cricket operations Peter Roach said. “Over the course of the summer, the venue has successfully hosted both men’s and women’s domestic cricket, and the first match of the Women’s Ashes.
“Weather conditions have not been ideal at times during the final, which is unavoidable, and every effort has been made to ensure as much play as possible given the circumstances.”
With the five-day final reduced to — albeit extended — four, Tasmania was always left chasing its tail and another four-hour delay when thunderstorms hit proved too insurmountable to overcome.
It forced the Tigers, who were charging at 1-166 from 26 overs when the rain hit, into an early declaration.
That left the Bulls a target of 128 from 32 overs, which they picked off for the loss of one wicket.
The pitch, which remained under covers all of Friday, did not deteriorate as expected, leaving a batting paradise which skipper George Bailey labelled as unacceptable.
“Absolutely not, the Brisbane grade final started the day we were getting sunburnt and wet feet, and we came off today for light; every other ground has lights,” he said when asked if AB Field was up to scratch.
Cricket Tasmania chief Nick Cummins said while the better side still triumphed, the shield’s showpiece event was not given a chance to shine.
“I really want to stress that there is no injustice here, if Queensland end up winning under these circumstances it is just reward,” Cummins said.
“They finished on top, they have beaten us home and away. But it is far from ideal when facility-related issues are preventing play rather than it being weather. If we want the shield final to be the showpiece of the competition, it needs to be on a showpiece ground.”