Worrying start to NSW’s summer

When perilously windy conditions cleared up on day four, the stage was set for NSW to hit back at Harris and Handscomb, who both posted centuries in the second innings.

But the Blues fluffed their lines and couldn’t trouble the Victorians, who ran out winners by 204 runs.

“It’s always great to start the season with a win,” said Handscomb at stumps.

“Especially now that we’ve got back-to-back games against these guys, it’s good to get the upper hand early.”

NSW’s collapse on day four exposed a yawning gap between the quality of the sides’ batting orders that only looks set to widen when Ashes auditionee Will Pucosvki comes back for Victoria next week. Veteran quick James Pattinson is also available for selection for the match at the MCG, which begins on Friday.

Handscomb was unsure whether the two were guaranteed spots in the 11 for next week’s game.

“What a good problem to have, you have a win and then you’ve got two Australian players coming back into the fold to potentially make your team stronger,” the Victorian captain said.

“There’s going to be a couple of tough conversations coming up in the next few days.”

NSW coach Phil Jaques was unsure whether Moises Henriques, who has been overseas playing in the IPL, would be available.

“I think he’s probably more likely for the one-dayer (on November 12) but we’ll wait and see what his availability is like,” Jaques said.

Having lost Daniel Hughes in the dying minutes on day three, the Blues could ill-afford to waste any more wickets when play resumed on Saturday.

Unfortunately, they did just that, setting off a collapse even more nightmarish than the one that ruined their first innings.

Victoria’s Will Sutherland began the day with a spring in his step and his intensity with ball in hand was rewarded when he dismissed nightwatchman Harry Conway lbw on five runs.

The second of the day’s wickets continued what was a match to forget for opener Matthew Gilkes. Gilkes was caught behind after completely misplaying a Matt Short delivery in his first stint at the crease and in Victoria’s second innings, he dropped a sitter at gully that could’ve sent Harris packing on 66 runs. Instead, Harris ended up on 137.

If Gilkes had nightmares about the Harris drop yesterday he’ll be waking up in a cold sweat tonight, because it was Harris who caught him – also at gully – on 20 runs this time around. He was nevertheless NSW’s second-highest scorer.

In the week, newly appointed NSW skipper Kurtis Patterson said he was hoping to use the domestic season to launch himself back into the Test conversation but he’ll want his next innings to go better than Saturday’s.

Patterson was a shining light in the first innings but not even he was immune to NSW’s bout of the yips.

When the collapse also claimed Sean Abbott, touted by Jaques as a genuine all-rounder worthy of Ashes consideration, the Victorians were all but home.

NSW was left to rue difficult bowling conditions on day three.

“You can’t control the weather but it was pretty awful. It was like bowling with a hair-dryer there for a while,” said Jaques.

Jaques could see positives in the loss, including Tanveer Sangha taking three wickets in his first-class debut in the first innings.

“It’s like (Sangha) has been playing for ten years. He looked calm, he looked composed. I think he’s a future superstar of the game, I really do,” Jaques said.

“He’s fitted in really well around our group and bowled beautifully on debut.”

Former Test wicketkeeper Peter Nevill helped the Blues save face by top-scoring with an unbeaten 29 from 129 deliveries and when he partnered with Nathan Lyon late into the afternoon, a draw looked possible.

“I was a bit nervous with Nev and Gaz (Lyon) batting together,” Handscomb admitted.

“Gaz is nightwatchman for Australia so he knows how to hang around and Nev was playing quite well there.”

In the end, though, Nevill ran out of partners and the writing was on the wall for NSW.

HARRIS AND HANDSCOMB GANG UP ON NSW

Victoria’s Marcus Harris has sent a stern message to those hoping to leapfrog him into the Test team for the Ashes by slogging his way to a century at Sydney’s Drummoyne Oval on Friday afternoon.

Perhaps spurred on by news that three Queenslanders scored centuries in another of this week’s games, Harris and captain Peter Handscomb both cracked triple figures on day three of the Sheffield Shield Clash with NSW, heaping more misery on the home side after its disastrous batting collapse.

Harris wasted no time notching his half-century on day three. He hit Test teammate Nathan Lyon straight down the ground for six to bring up the milestone and Handscomb lifted his bat shortly thereafter.

By the time the first hour of play was up, Handscomb and Harris had recorded the highest second-wicket partnership in a first class innings at Drummoyne Oval.

The worst was yet to come for NSW, though.

Harris was given an extra life on 66 when Matt Gilkes dropped a sitter at gully and the NSW attack didn’t fare much better in perilously windy conditions.

The Blues’ star-studded bowling line-up, which features Lyon, former Test star Trent Copeland, Ashes hopeful Sean Abbott and highly rated youngster Tanveer Sangha, managed to keep the two Victorians scoring at a slow rate, but couldn’t break the deadlock.

“I’ve played cricket for a long time and I don’t think I’ve played in that windy conditions since playing in Wellington, which is ‘Windy Wellington’ for a reason,” said Copeland at stumps.

“It was tough work; bowling into it was really difficult today.

“(But) I think they played really well; we’ve got to tip the cap to both Marcus and Pete, I thought they were exceptional today.”

Harris’ century was the 15th of his Sheffield Shield career and his 19th in a first class innings, while for Handscomb, it was the 16th time he’d brought up a first class ton.

“It was hard work. I’m not sure I’ve had to bat that long for a hundred since probably my first,” Harris said afterwards.

“It was a rewarding thing to bat that long, especially with Petey. It’ll put us in good position for tomorrow.”

After more than six hours of play without taking a wicket, NSW dismissed Harris (137) and Handscomb (115) in the space of three balls.

Abbott chalked up his seventh and eighth wickets of the match, first enticing Harris into slogging to the deep, where he was caught by Lyon, and then bowling Handscomb.

But the damage had been done – Harris and Handscomb’s 261-run partnership was the highest second-wicket stand ever recorded in a first-class innings at Drummoyne Oval.

With Nic Maddinson and Matt Short unbeaten on single figures, Victoria declared at 3-290, leading by 338.

Daniel Hughes scored 200 runs in an intra-squad match in the lead-up to NSW’s Sheffield Shield opener but was dismissed on only 18 before the day was out on Friday.

Usman Khawaja and Harris’ fellow Victorians, Will Pucovski and Nic Maddinson, are among those hoping to break back into the Test side this summer, but they’ll have their work cut out for them if incumbent opener Harris keeps his form up.

Harris, 29, has the added advantage of having played red-ball cricket throughout the winter in England, where he enjoyed stellar form playing for Leicestershire, while most of his rivals for a Test spot will be relying on only a handful of Shield games to stake their claims for selection.

But Harris said selection in the Ashes hadn’t been playing on his mind.

“If you look too far ahead with that stuff, you can get yourself into a bit of trouble, worrying about other people and stuff like that,” he said.

“If you just focus on the game and trying to put your team in position, that stuff takes care of itself.

“I feel like I’ve got a good body of work under my belt over the last four or five years and going and playing in England, I had a good season over there, so I’m feeling good.

“Whether it helps or not, I’m not sure.”

Handscomb and Harris simply love playing their northern neighbours.

Friday was the fifth occasion Harris had scored a century against the Blues, while Handscomb clicked over 1000 career runs scored against NSW.

HARRY WINS ASHES REMATCH

NSW skipper Kurtis Patterson knows anything but a “really good spell” won’t be enough to keep Marcus Harris quiet, as the Ashes hopeful finished the day unbeaten on 41 to give the Victorians a healthy lead at Drummoyne Oval.

Harris was bundled out for just nine runs in the visitors’ opening innings, but finished the second day unbeaten on 41 alongside Victorian skipper Peter Handscomb, to give the Victorians a strong lead of 123 runs after a collapse of epic proportions left NSW with a mountain to climb.

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Blues fast man Trent Copeland managed to snare the early wicket of James Seymour for eight, although it did little to stop Harris and Handscomb building momentum.

With fellow Ashes squad contender Usman Khawaja blasting a century for Queensland in its Sheffield Shield clash against Tasmania, Harris will need to prove he can match that as he looks to make his claim for inclusion in Justin Langer’s squad.

The 29-year-old opened the batting for Australia in the Test series against India last summer, but is no guarantee to be there when the home side faces the first ball in the Ashes.

Patterson, however, knows they can’t continue to giftwrap opportunities for Harris to build a strong score.

“I thought he just played nice and straight and punished us when we got a bit full,” Patterson said.

“I didn’t think we bowled bad lines; I think that wicket is one where you can err on the shorter side.

“There’s a bit of margin for error because there’s not a huge amount of bounce.

“I thought we did that pretty well, and then when we missed and got a bit full, he drove the ball nicely and picked us off when we got too straight as well.

“He’s obviously a very good player; we’re going to have to have a really good spell tomorrow.”

The script was written for NSW to build on a solid start to its first innings as Patterson and nightwatchman Harry Conway began the morning session for the home side.

The pair managed a 38-over stand before Conway was sent packing for 20 after a Mitchell Perry delivery sent his bails flying.

Despite losing his batting partner, Patterson looked to steady the ship for the Blues and was gifted an extra life thanks to Handscomb, who dropped a regulation catch at first slip with Patterson on 33.

Patterson made it to lunch on 44 alongside Jason Sangha, as NSW sat in the driver’s seat at 3/100, but it all came crumbling down after the break.

Sangha was dismissed for a duck from 15 deliveries and Patterson followed him into the pavilion just five overs later for 48.

From then on, the proverbial saloon door never stopped swinging.

Ashes hopeful Sean Abbott couldn’t translate his sizzling day one form with the ball into his batting as NSW crumbled to finish all out for 151, losing its last five wickets for a meagre 19 runs as Victorian seamer Scott Boland terrorised the home side.

Boland, the 2019 Shield Player of the Year, finished the innings with 4/34 and helped Victoria to a 48-run lead going into its second dig.

Patterson was unsure exactly what was behind the collapse, but still believes his side has enough quality with the bat in hand to chase down whatever total Victoria manages.

“It’s always either an execution issue or a game plan issue,” Patterson said.

“I think it’s probably mixed between each different batter.

“But I feel like the batting group we’ve got, we’ve been in good shape all pre-season.

“We’re just playing a very good team on conditions that weren’t easy for batting today.”

While NSW struggled to meet Victoria’s first innings total of 199, wicketkeeper Peter Nevill cracked the 5000-run milestone for the state in his short innings of four, becoming the 23rd man to reach the figure for the state.

Nevill is also just two games shy of joining an eight-strong group of NSW players to make 100 first-class appearances, subject to selection.

Originally published as Sheffield Shield: NSW’s run chase gets off to nightmarish start