NSW are an interesting side. On paper they should be a lot more successful than what they are. Currently they are languishing at the bottom of the Sheffield Shield table, struggled in the Big Bash and are a credible third in the Ford Ranger Cup with two matches to go.
Fresh off their victory in the Champions League, they haven’t found life that easy at the top. They have lost Doug Bollinger to the Australian side and for the most part are without the services of Simon Katich and Michael Clarke. Injuries haven’t helped – they have been robbed of the services of Nathan Bracken, Stuart Clark, Phil Jaques and Brett Lee.
But still they have quality players the likes of Phillip Hughes, Dave Warner and Steven Smith.
Maybe it’s because of the quality of Australian domestic cricket. Other sides such as Victoria and Queensland which don’t have as many national representatives get the benefit of their players the whole year round. This is the benefit of Brad Hodge, David Husssey and Cameron White playing together.
Cricket betting odds rates Victoria as the best Australian side and it would be hard to argue with that. They have won the Twenty20 title again and are in the top third of the ladder for the other two competitions. They have a very nicely balanced side.
It is hard for the states as they are feeders for the national side. At any stage they could have to give up one of their players for national duty. Everyone is okay with that but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t disruptive. For instance, there have been cases where a Shield game has started and then a player has been called up on standby for national duty. The state is then allowed a replacement player during the middle of the game.
One of the good things about first class cricket in Australia is that there are only six teams thus it isn’t too complicated. The system in place is a great one and one which has been producing quality cricketers for over 100 years.
David Wiseman writes for this blog. He also covers sports betting.