Maddinson, Moises share top Sheffield Shield player award

Two players on the fringe of the Test side, Nic Maddinson and Moises Henriques, have had their outstanding domestic form recognised after being named joint Marsh Sheffield Shield players of the season.

Cricket Australia announced Wednesday that Maddinson, the summer's standout batter after blasting 780 runs at 86.66 in just 10 innings, and Henriques, who scored 512 runs at 51.20 in 12 innings, had tied for the award after each receiving 16 umpire votes.

Western Australia prodigy Cameron Green was only three votes from joining the duo in sharing the award, capping a stunning season by finishing as the runner-up on 13 votes ahead of veterans Shaun Marsh (11 votes) and Peter Siddle (10).

It's the first time either Maddinson or Henriques has been crowned and breaks up a sequence of three straight seasons in which the award went to a fast bowler after Chadd Sayers (the 2016-17 winner), Chris Tremain (17-18) and Scott Boland (18-19).

Maddinson has since admitted he wasn't ready for Test cricket after playing three games during the 2016-17 summer but, having moved from NSW to Victoria in 2018, has put up a compelling case for another chance.

In 12 Shield games for his adopted state the 28-year-old now has 1343 runs at 83.93 including five centuries.

Henriques has also been flagged as a candidate to have his international career revived for the planned June Test series with Bangladesh having played a key role in NSW's Shield title-winning campaign this summer.

National coach Justin Langer has suggested he would like to see the allrounder bowl more but the fact all four of his Test caps have come in Asia may aid his cause for a recall, if the COVID-19 pandemic eases enough for the two-Test series in Bangladesh to proceed as scheduled.

Ashleigh Gardner meanwhile took out the Lord's Taverners Indigenous Player of the Year gong after helping Australia's all-conquering women's team claim the Ashes and the T20 World Cup over the voting period.

Having become the first woman to receive the award in 2015, Gardner is now just the second player to have won it multiple times after D'Arcy Short.

Paul Wilson was adjudged CA's umpire of the year having made his Test umpiring debut in Bangladesh's Test against Afghanistan in September, while he also stood in the KFC BBL final.

Tasmania took out the both the men's and the women's Spirit of Cricket awards, with their men's side earning the most votes outright while their women's team were joint winners in a three-way tie with ACT and NSW.

"It is pleasing to see players and teams from across the country recognised in these awards, a testament to the strength of our domestic competitions," said CA high-performance general manager Drew Ginn.

"Similarly, we congratulate Paul Wilson on an outstanding season including a memorable Test appointment in Bangladesh, highlighting the depth of our umpiring ranks.

"While the ongoing coronavirus threat will ensure our players and umpires across the country undertake a very different preparation for next season, we look forward to the return of domestic cricket in the summer of 2020-21."

Marcus Stoinis and Sophie Devine had previously been announced as the Big Bash players of the season, Marnus Labuschagne and Usman Khawaja shared the Marsh One-Day Cup award while Nicole Bolton was the Women's National Cricket League player of the year.

2020 State Cricket Awards

Marsh Sheffield Shield players of the year – Moises Henriques (New South Wales) & Nic Maddinson (Victoria)

Marsh One Day Cup players of the year – Marnus Labuschagne and Usman Khawaja (Queensland)

Women's National Cricket League player of the year – Nicole Bolton (Western Australia)

KFC Big Bash League player of the year – Marcus Stoinis (Melbourne Stars)

Rebel Women's Big Bash League player of the year – Sophie Devine (Adelaide Strikers)

Lords Taverners Indigenous player of the year – Ashleigh Gardner (Australia, New South Wales, Sydney Sixers)

Spirit of Cricket Award (men's) – Tasmania

Spirit of Cricket Award (women's) – ACT, New South Wales and Tasmania

Cricket Australia Umpire Award – Paul Wilson