Thought this thread is needed, based on Lastbroadcast's ideas.

Let's make it a domestic cricket thread so we can talk about the matador cup as well.

Big Bash deserves its own thread.

Big Bash doesn't deserve any coverage, 20/20 cricket is shit.

Make Matador Cup a different thread.

I tend to follow only First Class and Test cricket.

I agree with you, but we are a very, very small minority.

I am a TCA member. At Shield games there are a few hundred spectators to watch Tasmania. For Big Bash games they draw up to 17 000 at Bellerive Oval to watch the Hobart Hurricanes.

Amazing! Mitchell Starc has taken two hat tricks in the NSWvWA game to see NSW to victory

Renshaw batted time against Tasmania in the recent Shield.

He looked untroubled until he got out in the second dig.

For national team implications, these performances have been significant in this round of the Shield.

* Maxwell's 270 odd knock. He  has claims for the Test all rounder's position.

* Mitch Marsh's 140 odd knock. He also has claims for the Test all rounder's position.

*Jackson Bird's 8 wickets against SA.



There is a school of thought that Australia needs a 5th bowler to maintain the efficacy of the three quicks as strike bowlers. Who should be dropped to make way for an all rounder?




In terms of national selection n over the last year, Tassie selectors have preferred Wade, Dunk and Doran over reinstated Test keeper, Tim Paine.

Paine's skills as the best keeper are there for all to see in the Brisbane Test. His national team performances in 20/20 have seen the resurgence of his Test career. Many informed pundits  thought he shouldn't have been dropped after he took over from Haddin  whilst he was injured. They thought he was a better keeper, only superseded by SA keeper Graham Manou at that point in time. Haddin's superior batting saved his career.

I don't know what has happened to Tasmania in the last three Shield games?

They were easybeats in the first two games, but have been a powerhouse in the last three games. The attack against NSW was very accurate this week. They have four quicks and a part time spinner.

The batting has also improved.

I attended two of the three days play against NSW.

In the local tabloid the Tasmanian Shield players get almost no publicity. Nobody would know who the players are. There is not even any prior media coverage for Shield games in Hobart.

Meanwhile the BBL, even the women, are getting an incredible amount  of publicity in the local tabloid.

Had a good look at last round's game between Tasmania and West Aus live at the match on each day.


Tasmania won by an innings.

However, many first team players were out for  WA. Agar, the Marshes, Coulter-Nile and Behrendorf were absent.  I suppose Paine, Bird and Bell weren't available for Tasmania.

The first two sessions on day one featured a slow scoring rate by Tasmania who were the batting team. Most WA bowlers went for just over 1 an over with Tasmania struggling to score runs at a decent strike rate for the first five wickets. Most of the first  five Tassie  batters had strike rates between 15 and 30.

The fifth wicket went for 159 in the third session. Milenko came to the crease and thrashed the WA  attack with a strike rate  of over 100! Wade joined in too. They scored 70 runs  in no time, with the pitch flattening out.

Prior to this Jake Doran ( 39 runs) and Wade (batting at five) played very resolute innings with the ball doing a bit. These innings turned out to be decisive in the context of the game. Wade eventually scored 139.

Tassie declared at about 9-430.

WA were then skittled for just over 60 runs. Tasmanian bowlers shared the wickets.

In the second innings WA were all out without Tasmania needing to bat again.

One lowlight was that neither team played a specialist spinner. Wickets like this one at Bellerive are counterproductive to developing spinners for the subcontinent, when most effective  pace bowlers in both teams would probably  be innocuous in those conditions.

Tasmania is currently top of the Shield ladder. Apart from Tim Paine currently being a Test incumbent, no player form either side looked like a Test prospect, apart from Wade's batting as a keeper. His glovework isn't as good as Paine's though.

I've just seen most of the first two days of the Tasmania v South Australia game at Bellerive.

Tassie is right on top with just under 400 in the first innings. When I left just before stumps, SA were about 6 for 150.

The Duke ball is making it interesting. Jake Doran said it swings that throughout the innings. With the Kookaburra ball at Bellerive  the wicket seams for two sessions than flattens out to  an easy batting wicket. The scoring with the Duke ball has been slower, but the bowlers are always in the game.

The sad thing  is that both teams are playing all pace attacks. No spinners are developing their skills. Also, batting skills against spin are not being tested. Zampa is SA's 12th man.

Left arm pace bowler Winter has looked good for SA. Ditto left arm pace bowler Sam Rainbird, who has been impressive for Tassie. Both have generated late swing.

I've always wondered about the effect of the Duke ball in the Shield if it was used. I've seen some articles where English players think it is too easy to bat here. This year they struggled against an exceptional quality attack. Normally, they think with bright sunny skies, the effect of the heat tiring bowlers out and  the Kookaburra ball makes it easier to bat.

Sounds like some Aussie players are having to work harder to score runs in the Shield.

Actually SA are 7-170.

When I comment about bowlers, both Winter from SA, and, Tassie's Rainbird, constantly  beat the bat, hit edges, forced mistimed shots and made the ball swing - late. Winter got 5 wickets and Rainbird is currently wicketless. Yet both bowled well.

Many other bowlers from both teams have bowled more balls that have hit the middle of the bat, but they've taken wickets.

On the third day, SA fought back against Tasmania bowling Tassie out for 164.  Silk was easily the top scorer with 53.

They are now chasing 331 for victory, being 1 - 49 at stumps.

Looks like Queensland/WA is heading for a draw in Brisbane, with a rain effected game.

Just got home from the Tas/SA  Shield game.

Tasmnai won a thriller by 16 runs!

Travid head played a magnificent,m chanselless innings of 140 odd. He was out 19 runs short of the required total leaving numbers 10 and 11, Winter and Worrall, to put up a partnership of 3 runs before Bird skittled it.

What a game!

If Tasmania beats Victoria next week, at Bellerive, they make the Shield final.




The big changes have been :

* Adam Griffiths is head coach.  He was assistant coach  to Justin Langer in WA for a few years. Griffiths is a trained teacher and former Tasmanian Shield fast bowler. He was ecstatic at the end of the game! Tasmania have been last for a few years.

* Jeff Vaughan, former Kiwi Test  player, is now batting coach.

* Drew Ginn, former Aussie rowing gold medallist, is High Performance Director.

Tassiewere 7- 304 at stumps last night against Victoria. I left shortly before stumps and Tas seemed on top with three down for circa 180.

Once again the Duke ball provides for more interesting cricket - certainly with the benign  wicket that Bellerive becomes after the first two sessions. The  pitch seemed lifeless in the first session, then livened up in toe second..

I thought wrist spinner Ahmad extracted some spin in his later spells. Tassie and SA haven't selected a specialist spinner in recent games at Bellerive.

Siddle  bowled well with the Duke.

Jake Doran played another good innings for Tas and is one of the Shield's top scorers this season. At the time of checking  yesterday, no Shield player has scored over 700 runs for the season, which is a worry. Two of the top scorers are Renshaw and Maxwell. Weatherald ( SA) is top scorer so far.

Another big win for Tassie, beating Victoria decisively in 3 days at Bellerive.

Tas play Q'land in the Shield final in Brisbane.

The Duke ball has helped Tassie's seamers at Bellerive. I don't know about other Aussie pitches, but Bellerive used to be a flat pitch after the first two sessions with the Kookaburra. Now there is something there for the bowlers for the whole 4 days.

I'd go as far to say, the Duke should replace the Kookaburra completely in Oz. Or, Kookaburra need to start making a carbon copy of the Duke ball.

Jake Doran, Jordan Silk and Beau Webster  have all improved  immeasurably under new Tas batting coach Jeff Vaughan's tutelage.

Queensland  won the Shield on a batting friendly pitch. The Duke ball didn't swing as expected.

Tassie declared at 1-166 in an attempt to manufacture a result with Queensland chasing a small total.

It seems like Renshaw is back in form.