Burns puts Bulls in reach of famous Shield win

Test opener Joe Burns has kept alive Queensland’s hopes of a famous win in their potentially pivotal Sheffield Shield match against Victoria at the Gabba.

Joe Burns goes on the attack for Queensland against Victoria at The Gabba

Test opener Joe Burns has kept alive Queensland’s hopes of a famous win in their potentially pivotal Sheffield Shield match against Victoria at the Gabba.

Burns played a sparkling boundary-laden knock of 89 not out to lead Queensland to 1-134 at stumps on day three in pursuit of an unlikely 355 to win.

A win for second-placed Queensland on Thursday would move them closer to a spot in next month’s final, while defeat for Victoria would almost certainly end the defending Shield champions’ title defence.

Victoria had the better of the opening two days and that form continued on day three as Travis Dean helped the visitors move from a shaky 3-73 to 8-208 declared.

The opener fell four runs short of a century when a rearing Cameron Gannon delivery ended his 196-ball knock.

In concert with Matt Short (43), Dean helped add 97 for the fourth wicket as the game moved away from the home side.

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Gannon finished with 4-40 to be the pick of a Queensland attack missing regular frontline bowlers Mark Steketee and Michael Neser on Australia A duty.

Burns was in good touch from the outset and found the boundary 18 times in his 131-ball innings.

Burns and Bryce Street put on 124 for the opening wicket before the inexperienced opener was caught hooking for 31 off the bowling off Scott Boland.

Burns and Lachlan Pfeffer (3) negotiated four more overs before bad light brought a premature end to the day’s play.

Only six wickets fell on day three in contrast to 22 on the opening two days. Ominously storms are predicted for Brisbane on the fourth and final day.

Meanwhile, a brilliant run-a-ball 187 from Beau Webster has given Tasmania the chance of an unlikely final day Sheffield Shield victory against Western Australia in Hobart.

After a top order debacle, the Warriors finished day three at 6-161 in their second innings with an overall lead of 142.

They lost their top three for ducks in the space of five overs after Webster earlier produced a career-high knock to drag the Tigers back into the match. He whacked 27 fours and three sixes in a rearguard action that included 104 of his side’s last 123 runs.

Tasmania’s Beau Webster hits out against against Western Australia at Bellerive Oval in Hobart

Webster resumed Wednesday on 34 and with the Tigers at a precarious 5-188 in reply to WA’s 371.

But he took the long handle to the Warriors’ attack from the opening over, eventually pushing the innings to 390.

Webster made the most of a life on 97 when Simon Mackin dropped a simple catch at fine leg off the bowling of Joel Paris.

Paris, who was WA’s best with 5-90, got his man when Webster edged to wicketkeeper Josh Philippe.

The Warriors fell to 3-6 with Jake Carder, Cameron Bancroft and Shaun Marsh all out for zero in a new-ball blitz from Gabe Bell and Nathan Ellis. Debutant Ellis, who starred with his death bowling in this season’s Big Bash, was impressive with 3-50 to take his match haul to six.

Coming off a career-high 158 in the first dig, talented youngster Cameron Green mounted a recovery mission with Philippe (55).

But that ended when the No 5 was given out caught behind for 45. Paris (26) and Aaron Hardie (18) put on a valuable unbeaten 52-run stand to get WA to stumps.

The third-placed Warriors are only five competition points behind Queensland, while last-placed Tasmania are chasing their second victory of the season.

In Sydney, NSW opener Daniel Hughes posted his highest first class score with the Sheffield Shield leaders setting South Australia a near-impossible task at Bankstown Oval.

The hosts scored with ease to reach 2-236 before declaring during the final session with a lead of 402.

SA openers Jake Weatherald and Henry Hunt looked set to survive the 17 overs before stumps, only for the latter to fall off the bowling of Liam Hatcher in the dying stages for 15.

Weatherald ended the day unbeaten on 19 with SA at 1-40.

A win for NSW would all but lock up their spot in next month’s final with two rounds to be played.

Hughes followed his first innings 103 with a confident knock of 136 from just 170 deliveries, including 22 boundaries, surpassing 3000 first class runs along the way.

Hughes’ seventh first class century came off 141 balls and he had just surpassed his previous best of 134 when caught on the boundary off the bowling of Chadd Sayers.

Daniel Hughes after scoring his second century of the game against South Australia on day three of the Sheffield Shield match at Bankstown Oval

Along with Nick Larkin (32), Hughes helped add 94 for the first wicket.

Rookie Daniel Solway continued his impressive debut season with an unbeaten 53 off 69 balls on his club home ground.

Batting wasn’t so easy for South Australia’s tailenders during the morning session with Trent Copeland leading the Blues’ attack.

Copeland added two more scalps to his overnight haul to end with 5-63, surpassing the 300-wicket mark for NSW in the process.

South Australia resumed at their overnight 6-135 but were eventually dismissed for 207, leaving a deficit of 166 on the first innings.

Defeat for fourth-placed SA would mean they need to rely on other results to keep their Shield campaign alive.

AAP