A detailed look at how South Australia's opponents for the Shield final could be determined
Bonus point explainer: Final round scenarios for Queensland, NSW
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Such is the closeness in the race for this summer's Sheffield Shield final, even a win in their last round match might not be enough for Queensland to hang onto second spot.
While runaway ladder-leaders South Australia have locked away top spot and hosting rights for the decider at Karen Rolton Oval, third-placed NSW are breathing down the neck of the Bulls who jumped to second following their thumping win over Tasmania last Saturday.
Queensland holds a slender lead of 1.41 points over NSW heading into today's last round, while fourth-placed Western Australia are 2.37 points further back and Victoria are 4.31 points behind.
WA and Victoria play each other in the final round with the loser of that match eliminated, while the winner needs to rely on Queensland and NSW both losing or drawing their respective matches against SA and Tasmania to be any chance of reaching the final.
But given the intricate first-innings bonus points on offer in the Shield competition and the narrow gap separating second and third, NSW are a chance to jump Queensland even if both sides win.
While NSW coach Greg Shipperd said his side is focused first and foremost on winning the day-night pink-ball clash with Tasmania in Hobart, they are also aware of the bonus points equation.
"Winning the game is the priority and how the cards fall after that, we will find out," Shipperd said. "But yes, we're aware of the bonus point gap.
"Trying to read the unfolding of other games and also assessing the conditions down in Tasmania, it'll be a new experience for a lot of our players, playing with a pink ball and down there this late in the season."
In the Sheffield Shield competition, teams get six points for an outright win and one point for a draw, which is why WA and the Vics both need to win to stay in the race.
Teams can also earn points in the first innings of each match for wickets taken and runs scored in the first 100 overs, aimed at encouraging attacking play.
Each team will earn 0.01 of a bonus point for every run over 200 they score during the first 100 overs of their first innings (for example 350 after 100 overs nets you 1.5 bonus points), as well as 0.1 of a bonus point for every wicket a team takes during the first 100 overs of their opponent's first innings (for example 10 wickets before 100 overs nets you one point).
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It means if both Queensland and NSW bowl out SA and Tasmania respectively inside 100 overs in the first innings, the Blues will need to score at least 342 runs in 100 overs to jump into second if the Bulls score 200 or less.
But if Queensland scores more than 200 runs in the first 100 overs, NSW will need to score 142 more runs than what Queensland do.
That number will reduce by 10 runs for every first innings Tasmanian wicket NSW take inside 100 overs that Queensland don't against South Australia, while it will increase by 10 runs if the Bulls take more wickets than the Blues.
It's a complicated scenario but essentially it boils down to this: NSW need to obtain 1.42 points more than Queensland from their respective matches if both sides win, which sets up a thrilling end to one of the tightest Sheffield Shield seasons in recent memory.
Sheffield Shield standings 2024-25
| Team | M | W | L | D | N/R | Ded. | Bat | Bowl | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
SA
|
9 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5.46 | 8.3 | 51.76 |
|
2
QLD
|
9 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7.5 | 8.3 | 36.8 |
|
3
NSW
|
9 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6.99 | 7.4 | 35.39 |
|
4
WA
|
9 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5.83 | 7.6 | 34.43 |
|
5
VIC
|
9 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5.19 | 8.3 | 32.49 |
|
6
TAS
|
9 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6.41 | 7.2 | 27.61 |
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
D: Drawn
N/R: No results
Ded.: Deductions
Bat: Batting Bonus
Bowl: Bowling Bonus
PTS: Total points