With records being broken, international stars playing for our domestic teams and tickets at family friendly prices, it’s no wonder this season has seen a swell in crowd numbers for New Zealand domestic fixtures.
The two shortest formats – the HRV Cup Twenty20 and the men’s One-Day competition – have seen crowds increase by 175 percent this season compared to the 2008/09 season.
The level of competition has also taken a step up in the three formats. The Plunket Shield four-day competition has grown significantly this season with more out right wins than ever before and four New Zealand records being smashed:
- Highest number of dismissals in an innings (8 for Derek de Boorder for Otago v Wellington at the Basin)
- Highest number of dismissals in a match (12 for Peter McGlashan for Northern v Central at Whangarei)
- Highest ever opening partnership (428 between Jamie How and Peter Ingram for Central v Wellington at the Basin)
- Highest sixth wicket partnership (379* between Shanan Stewart and Kruger van Wyk for Canterbury v Central at New Plymouth)
Cricket Players Association executive manager Heath Mills said the resurgence of the domestic game is a good thing for the public, the players and the sport. “Cricket is one of the only sports where there are three different formats and each of them has a different appeal. People can choose to watch what format they like,” he said. “The Twenty20 format is exploding and being played in front of huge crowds. That’s great for the players and great for the game itself.”
Mills puts the rise in standards and popularity of the domestic cricket down to a number of factors. “Firstly, we’ve seen domestic cricket go from strength to strength on the back of the professional contract system that has been in place for eight years, which allows players to concentrate on their games and develop their skills full time. Coupled with this the Ground Warrant of Fitness and associated standards has seen the development of world class training and playing facilities and finally we have seen New Zealand Cricket put in place a high performance programme which is improving all the time.”
This sentiment has shown through in the individual and team statistics. A record 66 centuries were scored in the Plunket Shield this season with just 29 three seasons ago. The number of runs scored by a team is also increasing with the Northern Knights making the third highest New Zealand team total of 726 against the Canterbury Wizards.
The bowlers have also stepped up with the 2009/10 Plunket Shield season producing 29 five wicket bags compared to just 11 last season. Tim Southee returned this year’s best figures of 8 for 27, which is the third best in the Northern Knights history
All the numbers stack up and show that domestic cricket is producing an appealing product and is on the right path towards attuning and preparing players for the more rigorous demands of international cricket
