SA see silver lining in Shield final decision

While acknowledging the inability to shift the upcoming Sheffield Shield final to Adelaide Oval was "disappointing", South Australia's men's team see some significant positives in the showpiece match remaining at Karen Rolton Oval.

The most lustrous of those silver linings is scheduling of the Shield game against Queensland starting tomorrow, which will give the ladder leaders a detailed understanding of what conditions await for the decider starting 11 days later.

The SA squad was in the nets at the Karen Rolton Oval this morning when news came through the Australian Football League (AFL) had blocked plans to stage this year's final at the 50,000-seat Test venue, starting earlier than planned on March 24.

Instead, SA's quest for the trophy that has eluded them for 29 summers will unfold at the boutique parklands ground on the edge of the Adelaide CBD from March 26, with the SA Cricket Association furiously pulling together plans to accommodate as many fans as possible.

But SA skipper Nathan McSweeney claimed today's news would have little material impact on his team's plans for the next two weeks, and might prove an advantage as they now play consecutive first-class fixtures at the Karen Rolton Oval.

Despite the ground being SA's auxiliary venue when Adelaide Oval is unavailable, they have played only one Shield game there this summer (against New South Wales in mid-November) when they were thumped by an innings and one run.

Indeed, from their eight Shield outings at the venue since it earned first-class status in 2019, SA's sole victory there came against the Blues in the final round of the 2021-22 season.

So McSweeney and his men welcome the chance to assess the nature of the drop-in pitches that have been prepared to replicate conditions found at Adelaide Oval, and to formulate strategy and personnel plans for the Shield final during the game against Queensland.

"Adelaide Oval is one of the best grounds in the world in my opinion, but Karen Rolton is an awesome venue as well and we now get a great look at what it's going to be like next week," McSweeney told cricket.com.au today.

"It will also help with our team balance, and we'll be able to get a good gauge on that so it's definitely an advantage and hopefully we can make use of it.

"It's a bit of a unique scenario, and so we'll probably look to rest a couple of guys that have had decent workloads throughout the year.

"But winning's a habit, so you want to make sure that every time you go out there you're trying to win and it's important that we don't mess around with that."

SA have already confirmed fast-bowling spearhead Brendan Doggett will sit out the game against his former team having sent down more than 80 overs in his past two Shield outings.

And while SA's leading wicket-taker for the current campaign, Nathan McAndrew, will return after missing last week's win over Victoria with back soreness, allrounder Liam Scott is also a chance to be rested despite being named in SA's 12-man squad.

That would ensure SA enter tomorrow's match with the dual spin options of Lloyd Pope and Ben Manenti, which is not only prudent given tomorrow's forecast of 39C in Adelaide but also to get a gauge on how conducive to turn the ground's pitch might prove.

Pope's leg spin has yielded 18 Shield wickets at 25.61 this season and the 25-year-old has proved particularly effective bowling in the fourth innings of matches at Adelaide Oval.

However, his record at KRO – eight wickets at 61.5 from three Shield appearances – is less compelling, and his potency against Queensland over coming days might dictate the make-up of SA's outfit for the final.

"The drop-ins have bridged the gap for sure," McSweeney said of the comparison between pitch conditions at Karen Rolton Oval and Adelaide Oval, where SA were undefeated this summer.

"It's still only 12 months or a bit more since they went in, so it's not quite the Adelaide Oval yet but it's definitely closer to what we get there and it's definitely a better cricket wicket than it was.

"Plus we enjoy playing here (at KRO).

"The good thing about this group is we've been building to this all year.

"We were on top in both (Shield and One Day Cup) formats at Christmas, so there's been chat around about finals and trying to win trophies and I think we've been able to accept that.

"Our minds could have drifted at times, but we've been able to focus on the right thing at the right time this year and it's no different this week.

"What's ahead of us is Queensland who are vying for a spot in the final as well, so they'll be up for it and we will also."

Queensland currently sit second on the ladder and could find themselves also playing consecutive games at the venue if they are able to clinch a spot in the decider.

But while their destiny remains largely in their own hands, the Bulls will be without in-form Test opener Usman Khawaja, who scored a match-winning century in the previous game against Tasmania but is unavailable for this week's SA encounter.

SA have not defeated Queensland at Shield level in Adelaide since 2016-17, and the left-hander has plundered three centuries and averaged almost 60 against SA's bowlers during that period.

In Khawaja's absence, his Test teammate and Bulls captain Marnus Labuschagne returns to the starting XI and will be part of a top order that includes opener Matt Renshaw, and Queensland's top scorers for the summer Jack Clayton and Ben McDermott.

Test-capped seamer Michael Neser leads the bowling attack following his eight-wicket effort against Tasmania in Hobart with emerging quicks Tom Straker and Callum Vidler in the 14-man squad.

Australia white-ball representative Xavier Bartlett is unavailable for the remainder of the season as he embarks on his maiden Indian Premier League campaign.

SA have been strengthened by the return of Australia keeper-batter Alex Carey whose 452 Shield runs at 90.4 (with two centuries) stood as the competition benchmark before he was lost to international duties in November.

But with his team already having secured the One Day Cup and a chance to complete their first-ever double of men's domestic titles, Carey has flagged his keenness to be part of the Shield push barely a week after returning home from the Champions Trophy in Dubai.

"Alex has obviously been at the SACA for a while and he's as super-keen as anyone to see success here," McSweeney said today.

"We're very lucky to have him back, he's been incredible for us for a number of years now.

"It's unlucky for (back-up keeper) Harry Nielsen who's played beautifully for us this year as well, and who was an important part of the one-day final win.

"So it's tough that he misses out, but Alex is obviously a world-class player and to see how hungry he is and how eager he is to get back among the group is pretty impressive."

South Australia squad: Jordan Buckingham, Alex Carey, Henry Hunt, Jake Lehmann, Ben Manenti, Nathan McAndrew, Conor McInerney, Nathan McSweeney (c), Lloyd Pope, Jason Sangha, Liam Scott, Henry Thornton.

Queensland squad: Marnus Labuschagne (c), Jack Clayton, Lachlan Hearne, Angus Lovell, Ben McDermott, Michael Neser, Jimmy Peirson, Matthew Renshaw, Jackson Sinfield, Mark Steketee, Tom Straker, Mitchell Swepson, Callum Vidler, Jack Wildermuth.

Sheffield Shield standings 2024-25

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 South Australia Men SA	9	6	1	2	0	0	5.46	8.3	51.76
2 Queensland Bulls QLD	9	3	3	3	0	0	7.5	8.3	36.8
3 NSW Men NSW	9	3	3	3	0	0	6.99	7.4	35.39
4 Western Australia Men WA	9	3	3	3	0	0	5.83	7.6	34.43
5 Victoria Men VIC	9	3	5	1	0	0	5.19	8.3	32.49
6 Tasmanian Tigers Men TAS	9	2	5	2	0	0	6.41	7.2	27.61

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