WA on verge of Shield win after marathon partnership

Western Australia have one hand on their first Sheffield Shield title in more than 20 years after all but batting Victoria out of contention on day four of this season's final at the WACA.

Opener Sam Whiteman (123) and young allrounder Aaron Hardie (119 not out) defied the visitors for almost five hours with WA going to stumps 6-313 and a commanding 393 runs on front with four second innings wickets remaining.

Whiteman, who backed up his first innings 85 with his second century of the season, displayed a power of concentration as he blunted the Victorians for an epic 338 balls without offering a chance.

The 30-year-old left-hander demonstrated an exceptional ability to leave the ball on length, with the Vics unable to challenge the stumps enough as Whiteman became the second leading run-scorer this Shield season with 641, 56 runs behind Victorian captain Peter Handscomb.

Whiteman also faced 179 balls in the first innings, with his combined 517 balls for the match 89 short of Stuart Law's marathon 606 for Queensland against Victoria at Allan Border Field in 1999-00, which is the record for the most in a Marsh Sheffield Shield final.

It was the leave that eventually brought Whiteman undone, however, shouldering arms to a Will Sutherland (1-75) delivery that clipped his off stump.

The pair put on 174 for the sixth wicket after coming together midway through the first session on day four with the hosts in a tedious position at 5-110 after losing 2-1 in the space of eight balls.

Hardie brought up his own century – the second of his first-class career – just before Whiteman departed with a powerful straight drive down the ground.

He raised both fists into the air before being embraced by his batting partner with the knowledge his knock had almost put his side into an unassailable position to claim their first title since 1998-99.

Hardie said he hoped they would keep batting tomorrow rather than declare as he doesn't want to have to bowl again.

"It's been a pretty amazing year so far. I think if we can go on tomorrow to win the game, which we've still got a lot of work to do to get there but I think it will definitely be (my) number one (career highlight)," he said after stumps.

Western Australia claimed the bonus points advantage on day three by outscoring Victoria during the first 100 overs of each team's first innings, meaning if the decider ends in a draw after five days they would be crowned Sheffield Shield champions for the first time in 23 years.

It gives WA the luxury of batting the visitors out of the game knowing they don't have to try and force a result to claim the title.

That scenario didn't appear likely when Hardie and Whiteman came together after Victoria had gained the momentum by restricting WA to just 18 runs from 16 overs in the first hour of the day.

Resuming day four on 3-91 with Whiteman 45 not out and 17-year-old Teague Wyllie 15 not out, WA progressed slowly to reach 3-109 at drinks.

But the defiance came unstuck immediately after the break when Mitch Perry (1-50) finally found the edge of Wyllie's bat on 23, with Handscomb comfortably taking his 27th catch of the tournament, the all-time record for the most in a single Shield season.

The Vics then had two wickets in two overs when Josh Phillipe pushed at a flighted Jon Holland (1-72) delivery and chipped a simple catch to Will Sutherland at cover.

Whiteman and Hardie, who was dropped on 49 by wicketkeeper Sam Harper when Holland found the edge, then extended WA's advantage to 214 at lunch, with the hosts scoring just 43 runs in 30 overs in the opening two hours at a run rate of 1.43 as Victoria sent down 11 maidens.

The pair then batted through the entire middle session without loss to consolidate Western Australia's grip on the title.

Victoria bowled spin for most of the last hour, with even part-timer Nic Maddinson sending down two overs as Hardie and Joel Paris (11 not out) comfortably saw out the final 30 minutes before stumps.

Victorian coach Chris Rogers said it was a "frustrating" day.

"We had a sniff there at 5-110, we got a couple of quick wickets, we just needed one more, a little bit of luck and we were into the tail of Western Australia," he said after the close of play.

"But credit to them, they played exceptionally well, they dug in and they made it hard and got the rewards, so the game has kind of got away from us, but I can't fault our efforts.

"We got nothing to lose really now. We've got to try and dig deep and find something and see if we can knock them over quickly and then bat out of our skin."

The Marsh Sheffield Shield final will be broadcast live on Fox Cricket and Kayo Sports, as well as streamed free on cricket.com.au and the CA Live app