Sheffield Shield

The Sheffield Shield is the domestic first-class cricket competition of Australia. The tournament is contested between teams from six states of Australia. Prior to the Shield being established, a number of intercolonial matches were played. The Shield, donated by Lord Sheffield, was first contested during the 1892–93 season, between New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria. Queensland was admitted for the 1926–27 season, Western Australia for the 1947–48 season and Tasmania for the 1977–78 season.

Sheffield Shield

Countries	Australia
Administrator	Cricket Australia
Format	first-class
First edition	1892–93
Next edition	2019–20
Tournament format	Double round-robin, then final
Number of teams	6
Current champion	New South Wales (47th title)
Most successful	New South Wales (47 titles)
Most runs	Darren Lehmann (South Australia and Victoria) 12,971 runs
Most wickets	Clarrie Grimmett (Victoria and South Australia) 513 wickets
TV	Cricket Network Fox Cricket (final only)
2019–20 Sheffield Shield season
Website	Cricket Australia

The competition is contested in a double-round robin format, with each team playing every other team twice, i.e. home and away. Points are awarded based on wins, losses, draws and ties, with the top two teams playing a final at the end of the season. Regular matches last for four days; the final lasts for five days.

History

In 1891–92 the Earl of Sheffield was in Australia as the promoter of the English team led by W. G. Grace. The tour included three Tests played in Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide.

At the conclusion of the tour, Lord Sheffield donated £150 to the New South Wales Cricket Association to fund a trophy for an annual tournament of intercolonial cricket in Australia. The three colonies of New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia were already playing each other in ad-hoc matches. The new tournament commenced in the summer of 1892–93, mandating home and away fixtures between each colony each season. The three teams competed for the Sheffield Shield, named after its benefactor. A Polish immigrant, Phillip Blashki,[1] won the competition to design the trophy, a 43 in × 30 in (109 cm × 76 cm) silver shield.

The competition therefore commenced some 15 years after Australia's first Test match.

Sponsorship and name changes

In 1999, the Australian Cricket Board (now Cricket Australia) announced a sponsorship deal which included renaming the Sheffield Shield to the Pura Milk Cup, then to the Pura Cup the following season.[2] Pura is a brand name of National Foods, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Philippines-based San Miguel Corporation. The sponsorship increased total annual prize money to A$220,000, with the winners receiving A$75,000 and the runners up A$45,000.

On 16 July 2008 it was announced that Weet-Bix would take over sponsorship of the competition from the start of the 2008–09 season, and that the name would revert to the "Sheffield Shield" or the "Sheffield Shield presented by Weet-Bix".[3] Weet-bix is a cereal biscuit manufactured by Sanitarium Health Food Company.

In the 2019–20 season, Marsh took over the sponsorship for the competition. This followed Marsh & McLennan Companies' acquisition of JLT, which had sponsored the competition since 2017.

Teams

Since 1977–78, all six states of Australia have fielded their own team. There is no team for any of the territories. Details of each team are set out below.

	Team name (sponsored name)	Home ground^[a]	First season	Last title	Titles	Captain(s)
	New South Wales (NSW Blues)	Sydney Cricket Ground North Sydney Oval Drummoyne Oval Bankstown Oval (FC only)	1892–93	2019–20	47	Peter Nevill
	Queensland (Queensland Bulls)	The Gabba Allan Border Field	1926–27	2017–18	8	Usman Khawaja
	South Australia (Southern Redbacks)	Adelaide Oval	1892–93	1995–96	13	Travis Head
	Tasmania (Tasmanian Tigers)	Bellerive Oval	1977–78	2012–13	3	Matthew Wade
	Victoria	Melbourne Cricket Ground Junction Oval	1892–93	2018–19	32	Peter Handscomb
	Western Australia Western Warriors	WACA Ground Perth Stadium (Optus Stadium)	1947–48	1998–99	15	Mitchell Marsh

Victoria was previously known as the "Victorian Bushrangers" between 1995 and 2018.[4]

^a Each team has used several venues to host matches. For a full list, see list of cricket grounds in Australia.

Competition format

Each side has played each other both home and away every season with the following exceptions:

• South Australia had no home game with: Victoria in 1901–02 or 1903–04; either opponent in 1907–08; New South Wales in 1910–11.
• Queensland and South Australia played only once (in South Australia) in 1926–27.
• Western Australia played each team only once from their debut in 1946–47 until 1955–56 inclusive.
• Tasmania played each team only once from their debut in 1977–78 until 1981–82 inclusive.
• In 2019-20 the season was curtailed after nine rounds due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[5]

Where the teams played an unequal number of games, their final points were calculated on a pro-rata basis.

Matches were timeless (i.e. played to an outright result, weather and schedule permitting) up to 1926–27. A 4-day time limit has applied since 1927–28.[6]

Final

Since 1982–83, the top two teams after the home and away rounds have met in a final, played over five days at the home ground of the top-ranked team. Between 1982-83 and 2017–18, in the event of a draw or tie, the Shield was awarded to the top-ranked team;.[6] Since the 2018-19 summer, in the event of a draw or tie, the team which scores more first innings bonus points, based on the system used in regular season matches, wins the Shield.[7] No final was played in 2019-20 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[8]

Points system

A number of different systems have been used over the years. Currently, points are awarded for each match during the home and away season according to the following table.

Result	Points [9]
An outright win (irrespective of the first innings result)	6
A tie (irrespective of the first innings result)	3
An outright loss (irrespective of the first innings result)	0
Abandoned or drawn matches (irrespective of the first innings result)	1
Bonus batting	.01 for every run above 200 in the first 100 overs of the first innings of each team only
Bonus bowling	0.1 for taking each wicket in the first 100 overs of the first innings of each team only

• Bonus point example – If after 100 overs the score is 8/350, the batting team would receive 1.5 points ([350 − 200] × 0.01), and the bowling side would receive 0.8 points (0.1 for each wicket)
• Quotient (team's batting average divided by its bowling average) is used to separate teams which finish on an equal number of points.
• Teams can be penalised points for failing to maintain an adequate over rate.
• The bonus bowling points were modified for the 2016–17 season. For the 2014–15 and 2015–16 seasons, the bowling team received 0.5 points for taking the 5th, 7th and 9th wickets (a maximum 1.5 points).

Previous systems

• The Shield was initially envisaged as a match-by-match challenge trophy; it was originally determined on 4 January 1893 that it would first be awarded to the winner of the next inter-colonial match (which was, in fact, the fourth of the season), and then would pass in perpetuity to any team which defeated the holder of the trophy;[10] But on 30 January, it was decided instead to award the Shield to the team which won the most intercolonial matches across the season.[11]
• The quotient has been used as a tie-breaker for teams on equal points since 1893–94.
• First innings points were introduced in 1932–33 and used until 1970–71.
• Bonus points for first innings batting and bowling were used from 1971–72 to 1980–81 inclusive. During the first 100 (8-ball) overs of each side's first innings, a maximum of 10 batting bonus points could be attained. They were awarded for every 25 runs scored from 175 to 400 inclusive. A maximum of 5 bowling bonus points were available, initially upon capture of the second, fourth, sixth, eighth and last wickets. This was later changed to wickets 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 as batting teams often declared when 9 wickets down to deny the bowling side the additional bonus point.

Competition placings

Prior to the introduction of a Final in 1982–83, the team with most points after the home and away rounds was declared the winner. With the introduction of the Final, the top team hosts the second placed team in a five-day match. The visiting team must win the Final to win the championship; the home team wins the championship in the event of a tied or drawn Final. Further details including match scorecards are available at Cricinfo[12] and the Cricket Archive.[13]

• % = indicates tied for position

1892–93 to 1925–26

Season	Winner	Second	Third
1892–93	Victoria	South Australia	New South Wales
1893–94	South Australia	New South Wales	Victoria
1894–95	Victoria	South Australia	New South Wales
1895–96	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia
1896–97	New South Wales	South Australia	Victoria
1897–98	Victoria	South Australia	New South Wales
1898–99	Victoria	New South Wales	South Australia
1899–1900	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia
1900–01	Victoria	New South Wales	South Australia
1901–02	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia
1902–03	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia
1903–04	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia
1904–05	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia
1905–06	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia
1906–07	New South Wales	South Australia	Victoria
1907–08	Victoria	South Australia	New South Wales
1908–09	New South Wales	South Australia	Victoria
1909–10	South Australia	New South Wales	Victoria
1910–11	New South Wales	South Australia	Victoria
1911–12	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia
1912–13	South Australia	New South Wales	Victoria
1913–14	New South Wales	South Australia	Victoria
1914–15	Victoria	New South Wales	South Australia
1915–16	Not contested due to World War I
1916–17	Not contested due to World War I
1917–18	Not contested due to World War I
1918–19	Not contested due to World War I
1919–20	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia
1920–21	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia
1921–22	Victoria	New South Wales	South Australia
1922–23	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia
1923–24	Victoria	New South Wales	South Australia
1924–25	Victoria	New South Wales	South Australia
1925–26	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia

1926–27 to 1946–47

  Queensland joined in 1926–27

Season	Winner	Second	Third	Fourth
1926–27	South Australia	Victoria	New South Wales	Queensland
1927–28	Victoria	South Australia	New South Wales	Queensland
1928–29	New South Wales	Victoria	Queensland	South Australia
1929–30	Victoria	New South Wales	South Australia	Queensland
1930–31	Victoria	New South Wales	Queensland	South Australia
1931–32	New South Wales	South Australia	Victoria	Queensland
1932–33	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia	Queensland
1933–34	Victoria	New South Wales	South Australia	Queensland
1934–35	Victoria	New South Wales	South Australia	Queensland
1935–36	South Australia	New South Wales	Victoria	Queensland
1936–37	Victoria	South Australia	New South Wales	Queensland
1937–38	New South Wales	South Australia	Victoria	Queensland
1938–39	South Australia	Victoria	Queensland	New South Wales
1939–40	New South Wales	South Australia	Victoria	Queensland
1940–41	Not contested due to World War II
1941–42	Not contested due to World War II
1942–43	Not contested due to World War II
1943–44	Not contested due to World War II
1944–45	Not contested due to World War II
1945–46	Not contested due to World War II
1946–47	Victoria	New South Wales	Queensland	South Australia

1947–48 to 1976–77

Western Australia team with the 1948 Sheffield Shield

  Western Australia joined in 1947–48

Season	Winner	Second	Third	Fourth	Fifth
1947–48	Western Australia	New South Wales	South Australia	Queensland	Victoria
1948–49	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia	Queensland	Western Australia
1949–50	New South Wales	Victoria	Western Australia	Queensland	South Australia
1950–51	Victoria	New South Wales	Western Australia	Queensland	South Australia
1951–52	New South Wales	Victoria	Queensland	South Australia	Western Australia
1952–53	South Australia	New South Wales	Victoria	Western Australia	Queensland
1953–54	New South Wales	Victoria	Queensland	South Australia	Western Australia
1954–55	New South Wales	Victoria	Western Australia	Queensland	South Australia
1955–56	New South Wales	Victoria	Queensland	Western Australia	South Australia
1956–57	New South Wales	Queensland	Victoria	Western Australia	South Australia
1957–58	New South Wales	Victoria	Queensland	Western Australia	South Australia
1958–59	New South Wales	Queensland	Victoria	Western Australia	South Australia
1959–60	New South Wales	Victoria	Western Australia	Queensland	South Australia
1960–61	New South Wales	Victoria	Western Australia	Queensland	South Australia
1961–62	New South Wales	Queensland	South Australia	Victoria	Western Australia
1962–63	Victoria	South Australia	New South Wales	Western Australia	Queensland
1963–64	South Australia	Victoria	New South Wales	Queensland	Western Australia
1964–65	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia	Western Australia	Queensland
1965–66	New South Wales	Western Australia	South Australia	Victoria	Queensland
1966–67	Victoria	South Australia	New South Wales	Western Australia	Queensland
1967–68	Western Australia	Victoria	South Australia	New South Wales	Queensland
1968–69	South Australia	Western Australia	Queensland	Victoria	New South Wales
1969–70	Victoria	Western Australia	New South Wales	South Australia	Queensland
1970–71	South Australia	Victoria	Western Australia	New South Wales	Queensland
1971–72	Western Australia	South Australia	New South Wales	Victoria	Queensland
1972–73	Western Australia	South Australia	New South Wales	Victoria	Queensland
1973–74	Victoria	Queensland	New South Wales	Western Australia	South Australia
1974–75	Western Australia	Queensland	Victoria	New South Wales	South Australia
1975–76	South Australia	Queensland	Western Australia	New South Wales	Victoria
1976–77	Western Australia	Victoria	Queensland	New South Wales	South Australia

1977–78 to present

  Tasmania joined in 1977–78

Season	Winner	Second	Third	Fourth	Fifth	Sixth
1977–78	Western Australia	Queensland	Victoria	South Australia	New South Wales	Tasmania
1978–79	Victoria	Western Australia	New South Wales	Queensland	South Australia	Tasmania
1979–80	Victoria	South Australia	New South Wales	Queensland	Western Australia	Tasmania
1980–81	Western Australia	New South Wales	Queensland	Victoria	Tasmania	South Australia
1981–82	South Australia	New South Wales	Western Australia	Tasmania	Queensland	Victoria
1982–83	New South Wales	Western Australia	South Australia	Tasmania	Queensland	Victoria
1983–84	Western Australia	Queensland	Tasmania	New South Wales	South Australia	Victoria
1984–85	New South Wales	Queensland	South Australia	Western Australia	Victoria	Tasmania
1985–86	New South Wales	Queensland	Victoria	Western Australia	South Australia	Tasmania
1986–87	Western Australia	Victoria	Queensland	South Australia	New South Wales	Tasmania
1987–88	Western Australia	Queensland	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia	Tasmania
1988–89	Western Australia	South Australia	Queensland	New South Wales	Tasmania	Victoria
1989–90	New South Wales	Queensland	South Australia	Tasmania	Western Australia	Victoria
1990–91	Victoria	New South Wales	Queensland	Western Australia	South Australia	Tasmania
1991–92	Western Australia	New South Wales	Victoria	Queensland	South Australia	Tasmania
1992–93	New South Wales	Queensland	Western Australia	South Australia	Tasmania	Victoria
1993–94	New South Wales	Tasmania	Western Australia	Victoria	South Australia	Queensland
1994–95	Queensland	South Australia	Victoria	Western Australia	New South Wales	Tasmania
1995–96	South Australia	Western Australia	Queensland	Tasmania	New South Wales	Victoria
1996–97	Queensland	Western Australia	New South Wales	Tasmania	Victoria	South Australia
1997–98	Western Australia	Tasmania	Queensland	New South Wales	Victoria	South Australia
1998–99	Western Australia	Queensland	Victoria	South Australia	Tasmania	New South Wales
1999–2000	Queensland	Victoria	Western Australia	South Australia	Tasmania	New South Wales
2000–01	Queensland	Victoria	New South Wales	Tasmania	Western Australia	South Australia
2001–02	Queensland	Tasmania	Western Australia	South Australia	Victoria	New South Wales
2002–03	New South Wales	Queensland	Victoria	South Australia	Western Australia	Tasmania
2003–04	Victoria	Queensland	Tasmania	Western Australia	New South Wales	South Australia
2004–05	New South Wales	Queensland	Western Australia	Victoria	South Australia	Tasmania
2005–06	Queensland	Victoria	South Australia	Tasmania	Western Australia	New South Wales
2006–07	Tasmania	New South Wales	Victoria	Queensland	Western Australia	South Australia
2007–08	New South Wales	Victoria	Western Australia	Tasmania	South Australia	Queensland
2008–09	Victoria	Queensland	South Australia	Tasmania	Western Australia	New South Wales
2009–10	Victoria	Queensland	New South Wales	Western Australia	Tasmania	South Australia
2010–11	Tasmania	New South Wales	Queensland	Western Australia	Victoria	South Australia
2011–12	Queensland	Tasmania	Victoria	Western Australia	New South Wales	South Australia
2012–13	Tasmania	Queensland	New South Wales	Victoria	Western Australia	South Australia
2013–14	New South Wales	Western Australia	South Australia	Queensland	Tasmania	Victoria
2014–15	Victoria	Western Australia	New South Wales	Queensland	Tasmania	South Australia
2015–16	Victoria	South Australia	New South Wales	Queensland	Western Australia	Tasmania
2016–17	Victoria	South Australia	Western Australia	New South Wales	Queensland	Tasmania
2017–18	Queensland	Tasmania	Victoria	Western Australia	New South Wales	South Australia
2018–19	Victoria	New South Wales	Western Australia	Queensland	Tasmania	South Australia
2019–20	New South Wales	Victoria	Queensland	Tasmania	Western Australia	South Australia

Player of the year

The Player of the Year award is announced at the end of each season.[14] Since its inception in 1976 it has been awarded to the best-performed player/s over the season, as determined a panel of judges. Victorian and South Australian batsman Matthew Elliott has won the award the most times, being awarded Player of the Year on three separate occasions.

Season	Winner(s)
1975–76	Ian Chappell (SA), Greg Chappell (Qld)
1976–77	Richie Robinson (Vic)
1977–78	David Ogilvie (Qld)
1978–79	Peter Sleep (SA)
1979–80	Ian Chappell (SA)
1980–81	Greg Chappell (Qld)
1981–82	Kepler Wessels (Qld)
1982–83	Kim Hughes (WA)
1983–84	Brian Davison (Tas), John Dyson (NSW)
1984–85	David Boon (Tas)
1985–86	Allan Border (Qld)
1986–87	Craig McDermott (Qld)
1987–88	Dirk Tazelaar (Qld), Mark Waugh (NSW)
1988–89	Tim May (SA)
1989–90	Mark Waugh (NSW)
1990–91	Stuart Law (Qld)
1991–92	Tony Dodemaide (Vic)
1992–93	Jamie Siddons (SA)
1993–94	Matthew Hayden (Qld)
1994–95	Dean Jones (Vic)
1995–96	Matthew Elliott (Vic)
1996–97	Andy Bichel (Qld)
1997–98	Dene Hills (Tas)
1998–99	Matthew Elliott (Vic)
1999–2000	Darren Lehmann (SA)
2000–01	Jamie Cox (Tas)
2001–02	Brad Hodge (Vic), Jimmy Maher (Qld)
2002–03	Clinton Perren (Qld)
2003–04	Matthew Elliott (Vic)
2004–05	Michael Bevan (Tas)
2005–06	Andy Bichel (Qld)
2006–07	Chris Rogers (WA)
2007–08	Simon Katich (NSW)
2008–09	Phillip Hughes (NSW)
2009–10	Chris Hartley (Qld)
2010–11	James Hopes (Qld)
2011–12	Jackson Bird (Tas)
2012–13	Ricky Ponting (Tas)
2013–14	Marcus North (WA)
2014–15	Adam Voges (WA)
2015–16	Travis Head (SA)
2016–17	Chadd Sayers (SA)
2017–18	Chris Tremain (Vic)
2018–19	Scott Boland (Vic)
2019-20	Moises Henriques (NSW) Nic Maddinson (Vic)

Records

Individual records

Most matches played

Rank	Matches	Player	Period
1	161	Jamie Cox (Tas)	1987–88 to 2005–06
2	159	John Inverarity (WA/SA)	1962–63 to 1984–85
3	147	Darren Lehmann (SA/Vic)	1987–88 to 2007–08
4	146	Travis Mulste (Vic/SA)	1984–85 to 1999–2000
5	142	Stuart Law (QLD)	1988 to 2004
Source: . Last updated: 26 March 2018.

Players representing three states

Player	Career	States	Matches
Graeme Watson	1964–65 to 1976–77	NSW, Vic, WA	60
Gary Cosier	1971–72 to 1980–81	Vic, SA, Qld	46
Trevor Chappell	1972–73 to 1984–85	NSW, SA, WA	63
Rod McCurdy	1980–81 to 1984–85	SA, Tas, Vic	33
Dirk Wellham	1980–81 to 1991–92	NSW, Qld, Tas	99
Colin Miller	1985–86 to 2001–02	Vic, SA, Tas	84
Michael Bevan	1989–90 to 2006–07	SA, NSW, Tas	118
Shane Watson	2000–01 to 2015-16	Tas, Qld, NSW	81
Shane Jurgensen	1999–2000 to 2006–07	WA, Tas, Qld	23
Aiden Blizzard	2007–08 to 2012–13	Vic, SA, Tas	21
Michael Klinger	1998–99 to 2018–19	Vic, SA, WA	122
Source: A Century of Summers: 100 years of Sheffield Shield cricket, Geoff Armstrong, p. 278. Last updated: 30 Nov 2008.

Six other players have represented three Australian states in top-level cricket, but without playing Sheffield Shield games for all three – Neil Hawke (SA, Tas, WA); Walter McDonald (Qld, Tas, Vic); Percy McDonnell (NSW, Qld, Vic); Karl Quist (NSW, SA, WA); Greg Rowell (NSW, Qld, Tas); Wal Walmsley (NSW, Qld, Tas), Dan Christian (NSW, SA, Vic).

Team records

Team results

Rank	Team	Entered	Matches	Won	Lost	Drawn	Tied	% Won
1	New South Wales	1892–93	874	373	246	254	1	42.67
2	Victoria	1892–93	869	338	248	282	1	38.89
3	Western Australia	1947–48	638	225	200	213	0	35.26
4	Queensland	1926–27	759	240	263	255	1	33.59
5	South Australia	1892–93	860	238	397	224	1	26.04
6	Tasmania	1977–78	412	102	162	148	0	24.75
Source: . Last updated: 17 March 2020.

Highest team totals

Rank	Total	Team	Opponent	Venue	Season
1	1107	Victoria	New South Wales	Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne	1926–27
2	918	New South Wales	South Australia	Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney	1900–01
3	900/6d	Queensland	Victoria	Brisbane Cricket Ground, Brisbane	2005–06
4	821/7d	South Australia	Queensland	Adelaide Oval, Adelaide	1939–40
5	815	New South Wales	Victoria	Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney	1908–09
Source: . Last updated: 31 March 2019.

Lowest team totals

Rank	Total	Team	Opponent	Venue	Season
1	27	South Australia	New South Wales	Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney	1955–56
2	29	South Australia	New South Wales	Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney	2004–05
3	31	Victoria	New South Wales	Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne	1906–07
4	35	Victoria	New South Wales	Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney	1926–27
5	41	Western Australia	South Australia	Adelaide Oval, Adelaide	1989–90
Source: . Last updated: 31 March 2019.

Batting records

Highest individual scores

Rank	Runs	Player	Match	Venue	Season
1	452*	Don Bradman (NSW)	New South Wales v Queensland	Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney	1929–30
2	437	Bill Ponsford (Vic)	Victoria v Queensland	Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne	1927–28
3	365*	Clem Hill (SA)	South Australia v New South Wales	Adelaide Oval, Adelaide	1900–01
4	359	Bob Simpson (NSW)	New South Wales v Queensland	Brisbane Cricket Ground, Brisbane	1963–64
5	357	Don Bradman (SA)	South Australia v Victoria	Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne	1935–36
Source: . Last updated: 31 March 2019.

Most career runs

Rank	Runs	Player	Career
1	13,635 (266 inns.)	Darren Lehmann (SA/Vic)	1987–88 to 2007–08
2	10,821 (295 inns.)	Jamie Cox (Tas)	1987–88 to 2005–06
3	10,643 (259 inns.)	Jamie Siddons (Vic/SA)	1984–85 to 1999–2000
4	10,621 (211 inns.)	Michael Bevan (SA/NSW/Tas)	1989–90 to 2006–07
5	10,474 (254 inns.)	Brad Hodge (Vic)	1993–94 to 2009–10
Source: . Last updated: 25 March 2015.

Most runs in a season

Rank	Runs	Player	Average	Season
1	1,506 (17 inns.)	Simon Katich (NSW)	94.12	2007–08
2	1,464 (18 inns.)	Michael Bevan (Tas)	97.60	2004–05
3	1,381 (20 inns.)	Matthew Elliott (Vic)	81.23	2003–04
4	1,358 (20 inns.)	Adam Voges (WA)	104.46	2014–15
5	1,254 (18 inns.)	Graham Yallop (Vic)	69.66	1982–83
Source: . Last updated: 31 March 2019.

Highest batting averages

Rank	Average	Player	Career
1	110.19 (96 inns.)	Don Bradman (NSW/SA)	1927–28 to 1948–49
2	100.09 (12 inns.)	Barry Richards (SA)	1970–71
3	83.27 (70 inns.)	Bill Ponsford (Vic)	1920–21 to 1933–34
4	70.88 (95 inns.)	Alan Kippax (NSW)	1918–19 to 1935–36
5	68.00 (81 inns.)	Monty Noble (NSW)	1893–94 to 1919–20
6	67.03 (64 inns.)	Bill Woodfull (Vic)	1921–22 to 1933–34
Qualification: 10 innings. Source: . Last updated: 26 January 2020.

Most centuries

Rank	Centuries	Player	Matches
1	45	Darren Lehmann (SA/Vic)	147
2	42	Michael Bevan (SA/NSW/Tas)	118
3	36	Don Bradman (NSW/SA)	62
4	33	Chris Rogers (WA/Vic)	120
5	32	Matthew Elliott (Vic/SA)	122
Source: . Last updated: 25 March 2015.

Bowling records

Most career wickets

Rank	Wickets	Player	Matches	Average
1	513	Clarrie Grimmett (Vic/SA)	79	25.29
2	441	Michael Kasprowicz (Qld)	101	24.56
3	430	Andy Bichel (Qld)	89	23.24
4	419	Jo Angel (WA)	105	24.86
5	384	Terry Alderman (WA)	97	24.21
Source: . Last updated: 22 March 2012.

Most wickets in a season

Rank	Wickets	Player	Matches	Season
1	67	Colin Miller (Tas)	11	1997–98
2	65	Shaun Tait (SA)	10	2004–05
3	62	Chadd Sayers (SA)	11	2016–17
4	60	Chuck Fleetwood-Smith (Vic)	6	1934–35
5	60	Andy Bichel (Qld)	11	2004–05
6	60	Ben Hilfenhaus (Tas)	11	2006–07
Source: . Last updated: 31 March 2019.

Best career average

Rank	Average	Player	Balls	Wickets
1	17.10	Bill O'Reilly (NSW)	10,740	203
2	17.74	Joel Garner (SA)	2,419	55
3	17.87	Geff Noblet (SA)	11,156	190
4	18.09	Pat Crawford (NSW)	2,517	61
5	19.08	Charles Turner (NSW)	3,920	73
Qualification: 2000 balls bowled. Source: . Last updated: 31 March 2019.

Hat-tricks

Many bowlers have taken a hat-trick in the Sheffield Shield. Mitchell Starc is the only bowler to take two hat-tricks in a Sheffield Shield match. In round two of the 2017–18 competition, Starc became the first bowler to take a hat-trick in each innings of a first-class cricket match in Australia.[15] He became the second Australian, and the eighth bowler overall, to take a two hat-tricks in each innings of a first-class match.[16] In a match from 4–7 November 2017, New South Wales played against Western Australia at Hurstville Oval. In Western Australia's first innings, Starc dismissed Jason Behrendorff, David Moody and Simon Mackin in consecutive deliveries;[17] in the second innings he dismissed Behrendorff, Moody and Jonathan Wells in consecutive deliveries.

Wicket-keeping records

Most dismissals

Rank	Dismissals	Player	Matches
1	546 (499 c. 47 st.)	Darren Berry (SA/Vic)	139
2	545 (530 c. 15 st.)	Chris Hartley (Qld)	128
3	488 (474 c. 14 st.)	Wade Seccombe (Qld)	101
4	350 (322 c. 28 st.)	Tim Zoehrer (WA)	107
5	343 (310 c. 33 st.)	Rod Marsh (WA)	86
Source: . Last updated: 26 January 2020.

Most dismissals in a season

Rank	Dismissals	Player	Season
1	59 (57 c. 2 st.)	Alex Carey (SA)	2016–17
2	58 (57 c. 1 st.)	Wade Seccombe (Qld)	2000-01
3	58 (56 c. 2 st.)	Chris Hartley (Qld)	2011-12
4	57 (57 c. 0 st.)	Matthew Wade (Vic)	2008-09
5	54 (52 c. 2 st.)	Wade Seccombe (Qld)	1995-96
6	54 (52 c. 2 st.)	Adam Gilchrist (WA)	1996-97
7	54 (52 c. 2 st.)	Darren Berry (Vic)	1999-2000
8	54 (50 c. 4 st.)	Adam Gilchrist (WA)	1995-96
9	54 (52 c. 2 st.)	Chris Hartley (Qld)	2008-09
10	54 (54 c. 0 st.)	Wade Seccombe (Qld)	1999-2000
Source: . Last updated: 26 January 2020.

See also

• Intercolonial cricket in Australia
• Matador BBQs One-Day Cup
• KFC T20 Big Bash League

References

1. http://www.join.org.au/letters/tubshvat.htm
2. Rick Eyre (17 November 1999). "Aussie state champions to drink from the Milk Cup". Cricinfo. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
3. "Cricket Australia and Weet-Bix bring Sheffield Shield back". Cricket Australia. 16 July 2008. Archived from the original on 26 July 2008. Retrieved 17 July 2008.
4. "Victorian Cricket Team name update". Cricket Victoria. Cricket Victoria. 24 May 2018. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
5. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-17/sheffield-shield-goes-to-nsw-as-coronavirus-ends-cricket-season/12062938
6. Frindall, Bill (1998). The Wisden Book of Cricket Records (Fourth ed.). London: Headline Book Publishing. p. 391. ISBN 0747222037.
7. "Rule change set to liven up Shield final". cricket.com.au. Retrieved 25 March 2019.
8. "New South Wales named Sheffield Shield winners as final cancelled". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
9. "Sheffield Shield schedule revealed". cricket.com.au. Retrieved 13 February 2017.
10. "The Sheffield Shield". South Australian Register. Adelaide, SA. 5 January 1893. p. 7.
11. "Correspondence". South Australian Register. Adelaide, SA. 22 February 1893. p. 4.
12. http://stats.cricinfo.com/australia/engine/records/index.html?id=114;type=trophy
13. https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Events/AUS.html
14. "Sheffield Shield Player of the Year". Cricinfo.com. Archived from the original on 27 April 2005.
15. "Starc's second hat-trick delivers victory for NSW". ESPN Cricinfo. 7 November 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
16. "Two hat-tricks in the same match". ESPN Cricinfo. 7 November 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
17. "Smith passes 50 after Starc hat-trick". Cricket Australia. 6 November 2017. Retrieved 6 November 2017.

• The History of the Sheffield Shield, Chris Harte
• A Century of Summers: 100 years of Sheffield Shield cricket, Geoff Armstrong
• A History of Australian Cricket 1993, Chris Harte