Cartwright, Rocciccioli push Shield final out of Tigers' reach

Western Australia pushed the Marsh Sheffield Shield trophy further out of Tasmania's reach on day three of the final as the state closes in on a third consecutive first-class crown at the WACA Ground.

The home side went to stumps holding a 382-run lead as off-spinner Corey Rocchiccioli (4-48) ensured there was no late Tigers' fightback in their first dig before WA's top-order defied the visitors on a Perth pitch that has gradually flattened out.

Hilton Cartwright (62no) copped several body blows, including one to the helmet off Iain Carlisle, but soldiered on to post his second half-century of the game as he and Aaron Hardie (39no) put on an unbroken 95 to push WA's third-innings total to 3-221.

Sam Whiteman's men hold no obligation to push the game having comfortably edged Tasmania in the first-innings bonus-point stakes.

The Tigers failed to register a single batting point, leaving an outright victory as their only path to a first Shield title in over a decade.

WA on the other hand are now in sight of registering a 'triple-double' – three straight titles in both the Shield and Marsh One-Day Cup competitions.

Rocchiccioli's supreme effort with the ball saw him finish with 10 maidens out of 28 overs bowled, snaring two of the final three wickets to fall on Saturday morning as Tasmania were rolled for 186.

That saw them concede a 161-run deficit after WA had posted 347 in their first innings.

The Tigers could hardly have started the day off in worse fashion when Jarrod Freeman was run out for a duck by D'Arcy Short after being slow out of the blocks on a quick single called by Brad Hope.

Rocchiccioli took his Shield season wicket tally to 43 courtesy of sharp catches by Joel Paris, who took a diving one-hander at slip off Gabe Bell, and Josh Inglis, off a Carlisle edge to give the wicketkeeper a third grab for the innings.

The laser-accurate Paris trapped Hope lbw for six from around the wicket as WA completed a suffocating bowling innings that saw almost 40 per cent of the 92 overs sent down finish as maidens.

Swing bowler Bell briefly lifted his side's spirits when Whiteman, whose first-innings 104 remains the match's highest individual score, edged behind for just eight.

But Short, a late inclusion for this match as a replacement for the concussed Cameron Bancroft, continued his strong return by scoring 38 and sharing in a settling 53-run stand with Jayden Goodwin (46).

The competition's player of the season, Beau Webster, underlined his rare all-round skills by having Short caught in the gully with his first ball of medium pace after two fruitless overs of off-spin.

Goodwin toiled for 117 balls to get within a blow of joining his father in scoring a half-century in a Shield final at the WACA (Murray Goodwin posted 63 in WA's 1996-97 defeat to Queensland) but perished attempting to hook Carlisle.

It encouraged Jordan Silk to persist with the short-ball tactic as the match gradually slipped out of reach.

Cartwright came under heavy fire, while Hardie offered keeper Jake Doran (on 31) a tough diving chance down the leg-side, but the duo remained resolute until the close of play.

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

Sheffield Shield 2023-24 standings

Team	Matches played M	Wins W	Losses L	Drawn D	No results N/R	Deductions Ded.	Batting Bonus Bat	Bowling Bonus Bowl	Total points PTS
1 Western Australia Men WA	10	5	2	3	0	0	5.53	9.4	47.93
2 Tasmanian Tigers Men TAS	10	5	2	3	0	0	6.06	8.3	47.36
3 NSW Men NSW	10	4	3	3	0	0	6.31	9	42.31
4 Victoria Men VIC	10	4	4	2	0	0	4.74	8.2	38.94
5 South Australia Men SA	10	3	6	1	0	0	5.19	9.3	33.49
6 Queensland Bulls QLD	10	2	6	2	0	0	3.54	8.3	25.84

Legend

M: Matches played

W: Wins

L: Losses

D: Drawn

N/R: No results

Ded.: Deductions

Bat: Batting Bonus

Bowl: Bowling Bonus

PTS: Total points