‘Painfully slow’: Victorian opener Ashley Chandrasinghe divides opinion with cautious knock in Sheffield Shield final

Victorian opener Ashley Chandrasinghe has carried his bat in the first innings of the Sheffield Shield final against Western Australia, finishing unbeaten on 46 at the WACA on Friday morning.

The 21-year-old couldn’t add to his overnight score as the Victorians were bowled out for 195 in 95.5 overs in Perth, with West Australian quick Lance Morris snaring three wickets.

Chandrasinghe survived nearly seven hours at the crease, soaking up 280 deliveries as wickets tumbled at the other end — he only mustered four boundaries during the entirety of day one.

He became the first player to carry their bat in a Sheffield Shield final since 1998, when Tasmania’s Jamie Cox achieved the feat against Western Australia.

Chandrasinghe also became the first Sheffield Shield cricketer to carry their bat with an individual score under fifty since 1932/33, when Queensland’s Geoff Cook compiled an unbeaten 36 against Victoria.

Speaking to reporters at stumps on day one, Victorian captain Peter Handscomb applauded the left-hander’s “very impressive” knock.

“For Ash to do what he did, carry the bat throughout the entire day, in challenging conditions and not going outside his bubble, was very impressive,” Handscomb said.

“He should be very proud of what he’s done today.

“His mental ability, to just lock in, stay in his bubble all day, and just play his game, is such a credit to him.

“For him not to get flustered, or to try and play a big shot, is awesome. He’s got a big future ahead of him if he can keep that kind of mental strength going.”

Chandrasinghe has quickly become renowned for his old-fashioned approach to batting in the Sheffield Shield — he brought up a century on first-class debut earlier this summer, scoring an unbeaten 119 (333) against Tasmania at Bellerive Oval in October.

His 311-ball century was the slowest in the Sheffield Shield since Tasmanian captain Jordan Silk needed 341 deliveries to reach the milestone against Queensland in March 2013. It was also the second-slowest Sheffield Shield century for a Victorian, narrowly behind Shawn Craig’s 316-ball ton against Tasmania in January 1999.

Chandrasinghe modelled his batting technique off modern greats Michael Hussey and Kumar Sangakkara — he undeniably boasts their temperament and patience at the crease, making just one run from his first 49 balls against Tasmania.

The left-hander, who has scored 317 first-class runs at 24.38 this season, divided opinion after his 280-ball marathon, with some arguing he was too cautious in the middle.

In response, Western Australia found themselves in early trouble when Victorian all-rounder Will Sutherland ran through the top-order with three quick wickets on Friday.

West Australian opener Cameron Bancroft was caught at square leg for 26 before young gun Teague Wyllie flicked a leg glance directly towards Chandrasinghe at leg slip.

The hosts were suddenly in dire straits at 4-53 when Mitchell Perry held onto a stunning catch at point to send Hilton Cartwright back to the sheds for a 19-ball duck.

Aaron Hardie and Ashton Turner steadied the ship in the afternoon session, combining for an 86-run partnership for the fifth wicket to put pressure back on the Victorians.

Sutherland broke the partnership after a brief rain delay, with Hardie miscuing a pull shot that was caught by Marcus Harris at mid-off.

Western Australia was 5-175, still trailing by 20 runs, when bat light forced a premature end to day two, with Turner (49 not out) and wicketkeeper Josh Philippe (25 not out) unbeaten at stumps.

Victoria needs nothing less than an outright victory to win their 33rd title because Western Australia finished top of the Sheffield Shield table.