Plunkett Shield 2023-24 Points Table: Updated standings after Wellington vs Northern Knights, Match 24
The 2023-24 edition of the Plunkett Shield saw three matches take place from March 24-27, with two of them ending with a result.
In the 22nd game, Central Districts secured a victory by an innings and 40 runs against Otago. With the win, they maintained the fourth position in the standings with three wins in eight games, while Otago finished their campaign with only a solitary win in the same appearances.
Meanwhile, Canterbury (3rd with three wins in eight games) were impressive with a win over Auckland (6th with one win in eight games) by six wickets in Match 23.
Match 24 witnessed the top two teams, Wellington and Northern Knights play out a hard-fought draw. With a better run rate, Wellington finished as the table-toppers.
Greg Hay, and Liam Dudding help Central Districts secure a dominating victory
In Match 22, Otago batted first and posted 309 on the board, with the top contribution from Dave Phillips (144). Liam Dudding and William Clark scalped three wickets each for the Central Districts.
In reply, Districts got off to a strong start with skipper Greg Hay (179) and Will Young (90). Then, William Clark (66) and Ajaz Patel (51) were impressive to pave the way for the team to finish on 580. Afterwards, Dudding was sensational in securing a five-wicket haul to decimate Otago to 231, which resulted in Districts winning the game by an innings & 40 runs.
Canterbury invited Otago to bat first in Match 23, which worked in their favor. Zakary Foulkes led the charge by taking five wickets and bundling out Otago for 216. Afterward, Otago’s Jordan Sussex was sensational with eight wickets, as Canterbury was all-out for 242.
In the second half, the efforts of Sean Solia (84) pushed Auckland to finish on 257 and set a target of 232 runs. In reply, Rhys Mariu (62*) and Chad Bowes (60) shone brightly to take Canterbury home easily.
The last match of the day saw Tom Blundell (103) and Gareth Severin (80) helping Wellington post 323 on the board. Joe Walker and Frederick Walker picked four wickets each for Northern Knights.
In reply, the Knights compiled a total of 362, led by efforts from veteran batter, Tim Seifert (104). Afterward, the match ended in a draw, as Wellington were at 127/4, with Tom Robinson as the top scorer.