Sheffield Shield 2025-26: All you need to know

When does it start?

The first Saturday in October! Footy finals are (almost) done and dusted and that means it's officially cricket season in Australia. Round one of the Sheffield Shield 2025-26 gets underway on October 4 with reigning champions South Australia hosting Victoria at Adelaide Oval, last season's runners-up Queensland facing Tasmania in Brisbane and Western Australia taking on NSW in Perth.

Tasmania, who will begin the campaign with Test allrounder Beau Webster in their side, are off to a hot start this summer and sit top of the One-Day Cup standings with two wins from their opening two games, while the Bulls are also undefeated in second place. There will be plenty of Australian Test stars in action for their states ahead of the Ashes with Nathan Lyon to feature for NSW, Scott Boland for Victoria, Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne for Queensland and Cameron Green is set to make his return to bowling when he lines up for WA.

There will be at least three Shield rounds before the Ashes squad is named with plenty of contenders, including incumbent Aussie opener Sam Konstas, looking to impress ahead of the Test summer.

Each state will play six Shield games before the KFC BBL|15 break and four after, with the top two teams to qualify for the final from March 26-30 next year.

What's the schedule?

The Sheffield Shield consists of a full 10-match home-and-away season with the two top-ranked teams qualifying for the final beginning on March 26 next year, which will be hosted by the team that finishes on top of the table after the regular season.

South Australia are the defending champions, breaking a 29-year drought between Shield titles by beating Queensland at Karen Rolton Oval in March this year.

SA will play their first four home matches at Adelaide Oval, Victoria will host two games at the MCG either side of the Big Bash, while NSW will play three home games at the SCG and Queensland three at the Gabba. Western Australia and Tasmania will play all of their home games at the WACA Ground and Bellerive Oval respectively. 

You can find the full schedule along with broadcast details for each match here.

Players to watch:

Sam Konstas (NSW): The incumbent Test opener started the domestic summer with a century in an intra-squad game and then followed it up with another for Australia A in their first four-day match in India. More runs to start the Shield season will go a long way to helping Konstas retain his Test spot for the Ashes opener in Perth.

"His preparation has been first-class," Blues coach Greg Shipperd said. "I'm really confident he'll score some heavy runs for us in those four or so games for us before that international series begins."

Michael Neser (Queensland): While all eyes will be on Marnus Labuschagne and his push for a Test recall after he opened the domestic season with a century in Queensland's first one-day match, veteran paceman Michael Neser also stood out across their two games so far. The 35-year-old was back to his best and had the white Kookaburra hooping a mile, which included a series of unplayable deliveries to leave Victoria reeling at 3-16 in their season opener. With Aussie captain Pat Cummins under an injury cloud, Neser is right in the mix to add to his two Test caps with a strong start to the Shield season.

Nathan McAndrew (South Australia): After consecutive fifties in the Aussies' second four-day clash with India A, the focus will also be on a batter in South Australia as Nathan McSweeney pushes for a Test recall. But another Nathan could also put himself in the frame for a depth Australian pace role this summer when the reigning champions kick off their Shield campaign against Victoria at Adelaide Oval. McAndrew led the wickets tally last Shield season with 40 scalps, backing up his 48 from the season before. An ultra-consistent performer with the ball as well as contributing handy lower order runs, McAndrew will be a crucial cog in South Australia's quest for back-to-back titles.

Jake Weatherald (Tasmania): The leading run-scorer from last season, Jake Weatherald is another in the mix for higher honours after smashing 183 for Australia A against Sri Lanka A in July. It was a slow start to the season for the left-hander with scores of 28 and 0 in Tasmania's first two one-day games so look for a strong response as they head to Brisbane to face Queensland in their Shield opener.

"He's really relaxed about it ... he's meticulous with how he prepares, and he'll stay very processed driven in this whole little period for him," Tasmanian captain Jordan Silk said ahead of the season. "We're confident that he's got the right people around him and got a great perspective of where he's at and the game itself, so we're confident if he brings a similar approach to what he had last season, then if given the opportunity, he'll thrive in that (Test) arena."

Fergus O'Neill (Victoria): After back-to-back summers among the top Shield wicket-takers, including being crowned the competition's best last season, O'Neill dominated in his first foray into county cricket over the winter in his four games for eventual division one champions Nottinghamshire. Unfortunately, visa restrictions meant he couldn't stay for the entire season but his 21 wickets at 17.90 put him at the top of the league's wickets tally after the opening four rounds. Still only 24, the Victorian seamer is around the national set up after touring with Australia A to India last month, as well as an appearance last season against India A in Mackay.

Cameron Green (Western Australia): The star allrounder will feature prominently for WA in the opening phase of the Shield season after being left out of Australia's T20 tour of New Zealand to prioritise his return to bowling in competitive matches ahead of the Ashes. Intrigue will surround where Green bats for his state after growing into the No.3 role for the Test side during this year's Caribbean tour, but playing as an allrounder again following back surgery could lead to a change in thinking on whether he lines up at first-drop against England in November. Regardless, Green's first state appearance in more than 18 months will be a huge boost for WA.

"Any time we get 'Greeny' back it's always a bonus," coach Adam Voges said.  "Whether that's two, three or four Shield games, we're not entirely sure just yet. He actually played in our intra-squad match (last week) and got a run-a-ball 90 and looks very sharp, so it'll be nice to have him at the start of the summer. Add the element of his bowling, hopefully for the Ashes, and we'll get back to seeing him at his absolute best."

Season previews

Cricket.com.au chatted to each of the six head coaches to get the latest intel from the pre-season and their hopes for the summer ahead. Make sure you check out the full preview for each team below:

How can I watch?

Every game will be streamed live and available worldwide (excluding India, Nepal and Sri Lanka) on cricket.com.au and the CA Live app, and also available in Australia on Kayo Sports. This summer, one match in each of the first four rounds will also be broadcast on Fox Cricket, as well as the final.

Fox Cricket broadcast matches

– October 4-7: Western Australia v NSW, 10.30am AWST

– October 15-18: South Australia v Queensland, 10.30am ACDT

– October 28-31: Victoria v Tasmania, 10.30am AEDT

– November 10-13: NSW v Victoria, 10.30am AEDT

– March 26-30: Final

Fans in India will be able to watch Sheffield Shield matches on FanCode while those in Nepal and Sri Lanka can tune in on Styx Sports.

Can I attend?

Of course! Entry is free for all matches in NSW, with no ticket required. At Cricket Central, patrons can enter via the main entrance off the car park, with seating available in the new pavilion and grandstands, or you're welcome to bring a folding chair or picnic rug. At the SCG, entry is via Gate A, with seating limited to the Members and Ladies stands.

Queensland and Tasmania home games are also free to attend, and South Australia offers free entry at Karen Rolton Oval. Tickets for Adelaide Oval games are $10 for adults, with free entry for under-18s and SACA members.

Western Australia home games at the WACA Ground are ticketed at $15 for adults, $10 for concession and $5 for juniors. In Victoria, tickets for matches at Junction Oval can be purchased at Gate 2 on Lakeside Drive and for matches at the MCG get them at Gate 2 on match day. MCC, Renegades, and Stars members can enjoy free entry at both venues by presenting their membership card.

Any news rules?

Yes, and this one's sure to create plenty of debate!

Injury substitutes will be trialled for the first five Sheffield Shield rounds this season as Cricket Australia seeks to develop a proposal that could be implemented at Test level.

The new rule allows teams to replace an injured player up until stumps on day two of the match. To provide fairness for the opposing team, they would then be permitted to make a tactical substitution in response, also by stumps on day two.

There are no restrictions on the type of ailment permitting a player to be subbed out of a match, with illness also included, and the injury may be sustained any time after the toss, either pre- or post-play (during warm-ups or away from the venue overnight), through to stumps on the second day.

Teams will only be able to make one injury substitute per match and their replacement must be like-for-like – that is, a fast bowler for a fast bowler, spinner for a spinner, batter for a batter and so on. The opposition's tactical sub must also be like-for-like to the injured player.

The match referee will determine the legitimacy of the injury substitution request and may place restrictions on both replacement players' involvement, such as instructing a batter they cannot bowl if they are replacing a batter who does not regularly bowl.

The injured or ill player will be required to serve a mandatory 12-day standdown period from national or domestic competitions, starting from the day after the scheduled second day of the match. Read more below:

What are they playing for?

Renowned as perhaps the most famous cricket trophy in Australia – if not world – behind the Ashes urn, states have contested the Sheffield Shield for 133 years.

The origins of the Shield date back to 1891 when Lord Sheffield (a promoter for the England team led by W.G. Grace) donated £150 for a trophy to be struck for inter-colonial cricket between NSW, Victoria and South Australia.

Polish immigrant Phillip Blashki, a prominent Melbourne silversmith and watchmaker, won the tender to create the trophy and crafted a Shield of incredible detail, with over 150 different components of gold, silver and copper making up the overall piece. The Shield includes the Australian coat of arms, Lord Sheffield's coat of arms and a centerpiece depicting a cricket match at Lord Sheffield's Sheffield Park cricket ground in Sussex.

Victoria was the first state awarded the Sheffield Shield at the conclusion of the 1892-93 season. Since then, Queensland, Western Australia and Tasmania have joined the competition and what was a colonial trophy has become a state trophy.

Since 1982-83, a final between the two top-ranked teams has determined the winner of the Sheffield Shield.

NSW (47) have won the Shield the most times, followed by Victoria (32) and Western Australia (18) despite joining the competition in 1947-48, more than 50 years after its formation. South Australia ended a 29-year drought last season to win their 14th title; Queensland took 68 years to lift the Shield for the first time after entering the competition in 1926-27 but have won it nine times since 1994-95, while Tasmania, who were the sixth state to join in 1977-78, have won it three times.

How else can I follow?

If you're not able to attend or watch live, or you just want to relive all the action, you can get all the live scores, news, interviews and highlights on cricket.com.au and the CA Live app.

You can also catch a replay of every wicket in the match centre on the CA Live app, which can be downloaded here.

Rapid stats

• South Australia recorded a collective batting average of 33.1 in the 2024-25 Sheffield Shield season, the best of any team in the competition, while Victoria (27.4) ranked last in this category. In addition, South Australia's collective batting strike rate (54.6) was the best of any team in the campaign.
  
  
• Michael Neser (Queensland) induced a false shot on 26.7 per cent of his 1397 balls bowled in the 2024-25 Sheffield Shield season, the best rate of any player (min. 3 innings).
  
  
• Tasmania (87 per cent – 114 out of 131) and Queensland (86.5 per cent – 115 out of 133) had the best catch success rates of any teams in the 2024-25 Sheffield Shield season. Only Victoria (5) recorded more run outs when fielding in the competition last season than the Tigers (3) and Bulls (3).
  
  
• Western Australia (79.2 per cent) and NSW (77.5 per cent) had the best bowling dot ball rates using pace bowling of any teams in the 2024-25 Sheffield Shield season. However, they took the fewest wickets using pace bowling any teams in the campaign (Western Australia – 111, NSW – 123).
  
  
• Western Australia duo Sam Whiteman (113.3 from 60 balls faced) and Josh Inglis (96 from 176 balls faced) recorded the best batting strike rates facing spin bowling of any players in the 2024-25 Sheffield Shield season (min. 15 balls faced).
  
  
• Kurtis Patterson (NSW) scored 280 runs from singles in the 2024-25 Sheffield Shield season, 13 more than any other player. In addition, only Tasmania's Tim Ward (114.2) faced more balls per innings than Patterson (111.1) in the competition last season.

How does the points system work?

Teams get six points for an outright win, one point for a draw, plus 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 runs after 100 overs gets you 1.5 bonus points) and 0.1 of a bonus point for every wicket they take during the first 100 overs of their opponent's first innings (for example: 10 wickets in the first 100 overs equals 1 bonus point).

Sheffield Shield 2025-26 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 Victoria Men VIC	5	4	1	0	0	0	5.32	4.3	33.62
2 Queensland Bulls QLD	5	2	1	2	0	0	8.18	3.8	25.98
3 Tasmanian Tigers Men TAS	5	2	2	1	0	2	3.34	4	18.34
4 South Australia Men SA	5	1	2	2	0	0	2.43	4.6	15.03
5 NSW Men NSW	5	1	3	1	0	0	3.32	4	14.32
6 Western Australia Men WA	5	1	2	2	0	0	1.61	4.5	14.11

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