New South Wales wins Sheffield Shield title

Canberra: New South Wales won the Sheffield Shield title for the first time since 2007-2008 when skipper Steve Smith and his Western Australian counterpart agreed to end the rain-interrupted domestic first-class final early.

Smith`s team only needed a draw to claim the Shield for a 46th time, and had a winning 463-run lead after lunch today when both captains sought permission from Cricket Australia to end the match four hours ahead of schedule and settle for a draw. Test batsman Smith was unbeaten on 103 at the close, backing up his 75 in the first innings. New South Wales made 447 in the first innings, with Moises Henriques posting 140. Josh Hazlewood snared 6-50 as the New South Welshmen bundled Western Australia out for 180 before going on reach 197-4 in its second innings.