Cricket: Shield changes prompted by earthquake

Matches scheduled to be played from March 3-6 and March 10-13 have been rescheduled for March 7-10 and March 14-17. Photo / Hawkes Bay Today

New Zealand Cricket (NZC) today released changes to the upcoming Plunket Shield schedule caused by the Christchurch earthquake.

Matches scheduled to be played from March 3-6 and March 10-13 have been rescheduled for March 7-10 and March 14-17.

The decision to defer play by four days for each of these rounds was made following consultation between NZC, the six major associations and the New Zealand Cricket Players' Association.

"The Canterbury team has obviously been severely impacted by the Christchurch earthquake of February 22," NZC chief executive Justin Vaughan said.

"Their match from last week has already been abandoned and all parties believed it to be in the best interests of the Canterbury team -- and the entire competition - for the round scheduled to start tomorrow to be delayed.

"This will assist the Canterbury players to recover from the devastating earthquake and also contribute to the integrity of the Plunket Shield, providing a more level playing field for all six teams," he said.

Last week's match between Canterbury and Wellington was abandoned due to the earthquake and cricket administrators are currently discussing the most appropriate distribution of points from that match.

- NZPA