Cricket Australia revamps domestic 50-over competition structure

Melbourne, July 30: Cricket Australia has revamped the domestic one-day tournament structure for the upcoming 2019-20 season. On Tuesday, it announced the fixtures of the 50-over domestic competition which will now be played in three parts, the first part -- Marsh One-Day Cup -- will commence on September 21. 

It will be followed by the Sheffield Shield beginning October 10. The remaining part of the competition, which comprises of 11 games, will take place in two more blocks - late-October and mid-November. The final of the competition will be held on November 26.

The other major change is the expansion of the Women's National Cricket League (WNCL), with teams each playing eight matches, compared to just six in previous seasons. 

Cricket Australia's Head of Cricket Operations Peter Roach said: "We've listened to the states, territories, the ACA and players on what is going to make our cricket system stronger."

"For the men's One-Day Cup, the key priorities were to play matches in more than one block, have them played on bigger grounds, ideally at our major venues, and play some more matches overall. We believe we have been able to meet these priorities.

"From a timing point of view, we need to ensure that we play matches at times of the season to best present and prepare our players for international cricket. At the same time, we need to ensure there are appropriate rest periods between matches and the right opportunities for players to participate in premier cricket," he added.

In the Marsh One-Day Cup, each team will play seven matches whereas in Sheffield Shield, each team will play six matches prior to Christmas to allow for a better crossover with home Test matches.

The cricket board further announced that the England Lions men's team will tour Australia during February and early March, playing five one-day matches and three four-day fixtures.

The India A women's team will also tour Australia in December. They will play the Australia A women's side in three one-day and three T20 matches in Brisbane and the Gold Coast respectively during December. 

The Pakistan men's team will also play tour matches in addition to two Test matches and three T20Is.