Burns ends 980-day wait for century to put Queensland on top

A classy Joe Burns century put Queensland in the box seat against Tasmania on the opening day of the Sheffield Shield match in Hobart.

The 34-year-old was unbeaten on 127 at stumps with allrounder Michael Neser also in ominous form, as the Bulls reached 293 for 3 after the hosts elected to field at Blundstone Arena.

It was the first Sheffield Shield century in 980 days for former Test batter Burns. His previous ton was at the same venue against the same opposition on February 18, 2021, with Burns making 171 in the first innings of a match Queensland won by three wickets.

Batting at No. 3 on Thursday, Burns unfurled the full array of strokes from his repertoire against the Tasmanians and brought up his 20th first-class century from 213 deliveries.

He had previously failed to reach 50 in all of his 11 first-class innings for Queensland in 2023.

Burns and left-hander Jack Clayton added 187 for the third wicket after openers Bryce Street and Matt Renshaw both fell cheaply as the Bulls slumped to 10 for 2.

Burns drove through the covers and behind point off the seamers with grace and control. A late cut from the bowling of offspinner Jarrod Freeman took him into the 90s and was a shot full of class. Burns was equally strong on the leg side and looked every bit the former Test batter who boasts four centuries at the highest level.

Queensland were without Test opener Usman Khawaja for the second time in as many Shield games after he was again rested by Cricket Australia to manage his workload.

Clayton had made 109 against Victoria in his last Shield innings and was looking good for consecutive centuries. But a short ball by Brad Hope hurried on to the 24-year-old and he spliced his pull shot straight to mid-on. Clayton made 96 off 175 balls in an innings that featured 10 boundaries.

In-form allrounder Neser was promoted to No. 5 for the first time in his first-class career and was given a life on 5 when Jordan Silk uncharacteristically dropped a sitter at slip off Freeman.

Neser rode his luck but played with aggression. In the closing overs, Tasmania had nine fielders on the fence, but Neser continued to try to clobber just about each delivery he faced.