New rules to breathe life into shield final

FOUR draws in the past five Sheffield Shield finals have forced Cricket Australia to act.

From this summer, bonus points for attacking play will determine the winner of the state cricket title under a oneyear trial of no drawn games.

The final — in which the team finishing higher on the table has been awarded the trophy when the match was drawn — had been in jeopardy in recent years as the Big Bash continued to have a greater impact in extending the domestic season.

This year, 14 extra BBL games will take the T20 competition in to the middle of February. The shield final, which CA opted to retain, will be played on the last weekend in March 2019.

Cricket Australia has continued a push to “own” the summer months and it’s hoped the rule change, which rewards fast run scoring and early wickets, will ensure the home season won’t limp to a lifeless conclusion.

“The previous rule allowing the home team to win the final in the case of a draw was not consistent with how this competition is generally played,” CA’s head of cricket operations Peter Roach said.

“In the past six seasons, we have had only two results in the five-day final — 33 per cent, compared to a 79 per cent win-rate in the four-day home-andaway matches.

“The rule will be trialled this year and we believe it will encourage the teams involved to push for a result and improve the spectacle in the tournament’s showcase match.”

A heat policy will also be introduced for all matches run by CA this summer, but won’t include international games.

The domestic season starts this weekend with Victoria facing Queensland in Townsville on Sunday.