2017–18 Sheffield Shield season 2017–18 Sheffield Shield season The 2017–18 Sheffield Shield season was the 116th season of the Sheffield Shield, the domestic first-class cricket competition in Australia. It started on 26 October 2017 and finished on 27 March 2018. The opening round of matches were played as day/night fixtures and the first three rounds of matches took place before the Ashes series. Victoria were the defending champions. In round two of the competition, Mitchell Starc became the first bowler to take a hat-trick in each innings of a first-class cricket match in Australia. He became the second Australian, and the eighth bowler overall,
Professional Cricketers' Association Professional Cricketers' Association The Professional Cricketers' Association is the representative body of past and present first-class cricketers in England and Wales, founded in 1967 by former England fast bowler Fred Rumsey (when it was known as the Cricketers' Association). In the 1970s, the PCA arranged a standard employment contract and minimum wage for professional cricketers in first-class cricket in England and Wales. Former Somerset and England fast bowler Fred Rumsey founded the Professional Cricketers’ Association in 1967. Before the creation of the PCA English cricket players had little to no say in the administration of the game in England and