Sheffield Shield. Round 6.

[Donny]

MCG. Match abandoned.

[Donny]

"As per Cricket Australia's Playing Conditions, the match can be rescheduled if an alternative venue and time can be arranged. If a rescheduled game isn't possible, Victoria and WA will receive three points each, plus an average of the bonus points awarded in the round's other two Shield games."

- cricket.com.au

[Donny]

NSW 2/58. Henriques 34*.

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SA 3/192. Were 3/57.

Weatherald 74*, Carey 41*.

[Donny]

How Victoria Could Earn Points:

https://www.cricket.com.au/news/mcg-pitch-sheffield-shield-table-rules-points-abandoned-match-reschedule-victoria-wa/2019-12-08

[Donny]

SA 3/180.

Weatherald 91*, Carey 73*.

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NSW 2/118. Henriques 72*.

[K]

[K]

'Following the previous Sheffield Shield match at the ground ... which fizzled out into a draw due to rain over the last two days, Handscomb spoke about the need to bring more life back to the pitches.

"[The] MCG pitch hasn't deteriorated for ten years," he said. "So I think we need to start making the game accelerate at the start of it, maybe make it a bit greener like it is in Hobart, where the game accelerates at the start and then becomes a good batting wicket. But that's up to the groundsman and see how they go."

Asked whether those comments played a part in influencing what head groundsman Matt Page produced this weekend, he said: "I think it may have helped him. We've had a lot draws at the MCG and it's about finding a wicket that can get a result. Unfortunately, he's gone a touch too far and I'm sure come Boxing Day he'll prepare a beautiful cricket wicket.

"Hindsight is a great thing. Unfortunately you can't change anything that you do. I said stuff, that happens, so be it."

Both Handscomb and Marsh offered their support to Page, who moved to the MCG after being head groundsman at the WACA. "I know Pagey very well. He's done some really good things since coming here. He was a great groundsman at the WACA," Handscomb said. "He has a lot of experience behind him and has a lot of time to prepare a wicket that, I think, will produce a good Boxing Day Test." '

(cricinfo)

[Donny]

SA 346. Weatherald 126, Carey 73, Bird 4/70.

[K]

' "He's [Adelaide Oval curator Damien Hough] able to produce grassy surfaces which are even," [Mark] Taylor said on Nine's Sports Sunday program.

"At the moment the MCG, when they put grass on it, is uneven. That's what that surface was yesterday. That's the concern going into Boxing Day.

"What does the groundsman do? Does he become more conservative? Take the grass off it, take the moisture out of it and we have a boring game, or does he go for a bit of grass and risk what we saw yesterday?"'

[Donny]

NSW 5/262. Henriques 116, Abbott 40*.

Leading by 22 runs.

[K]

'Melbourne Cricket Club groundstaff had left extra moisture in the pitch following criticism from Victoria captain Peter Handscomb of the wicket produced for the preceding Shield game against NSW, which ended in a draw.

The ploy backfired but both the MCC and Cricket Australia (CA) are determined to not see a repeat of the drawn 2017 Ashes Test when Australia face New Zealand on December 26-30.

That 2017 match saw just 24 wickets lost over five days on a lifeless surface, which was given an unprecedented 'poor' rating by the International Cricket Council. Its rating for last summer’s MCG Test (which India won by 137 runs and went into a fifth day) was bumped up to ‘average’.

"We don’t want to overcorrect and go backwards again and everyone be conservative," said MCC chief executive Stuart Fox.

"We've worked really hard over the last 18 months to try to produce really good pitches and we have produced two really good ones for the two Sheffield Shield (games) prior to this.

"We may have just pushed it a little bit too far (for this Shield match) but through a little bit of adversity, we may have actually created a benchmark … for the curators to now make some adjustments.

"We're still very confident we're on the right track for Boxing Day."
...

"On the surface everyone can panic, but I actually applaud Matt Page and the MCG," Langer told the ABC on Sunday. "There's been some pressure over the last couple of years ... it's been too flat and everyone's aware of that.

"They've pushed the boundaries - by the sounds of it a bit too much - to try and get a contest between bat and ball.

"Test cricket is like a big game of chess – when it's too batter friendly, that's not positive for anybody. For Test cricket to keep thriving, we need these wickets to (provide) a great contest."'

https://www.cricket.com.au/news/match-report/victoria-western-australia-sheffield-shield-day-two-mcg-dangerous-pitch-video-highlights/2019-12-08

[Donny]

NSW 8/368. Abbott 86.

Nevill 81*.

NSW leads by 128.

[Donny]

Tas. 4/66. Agar 3/14.

[Donny]

Tas. 6/241 at stumps. Leading by 149.

McDermott 88*, Neil-Smith 31*.

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Stumps: Q'land (5/111) trails by 24 runs. Khawaja 53*.

[Donny]

Tas. 261. McDermott 89, Agar 5/53.

SA 4/52. Bell & Meredith 2 wickets each.

SA trailing by 117 runs.