South Australia call up second spinner for Shield final

South Australia have added left-arm spinner Tom Andrews and fast bowler Kane Richardson to their squad for the Sheffield Shield final against Victoria in Alice Springs.

The pitch at Traeger Park has traditionally taken spin, meaning Andrews is in with a chance of joining Adam Zampa in a spin bowling pair for South Australia as they seek to defeat Victoria in the decider, having lost to them in the final last season. Andrews has played three first-class games and taken seven wickets. His last Shield match was against New South Wales in February 2016.

"We've heard that it is a good cricket wicket and that it tends to spin a bit later in the game, but we think we have the squad to take advantage of the conditions and put our best foot forward," South Australia high performance chief Tim Nielsen said.

"We need to play positively and aggressively and back ourselves in and make sure that we give ourselves the best chance of winning the game. Unlike last year, we have to win to hoist the Shield in the air so there's no second option."

Two players who missed out last season, Callum Ferguson and Tom Cooper, are set to take part and will both be playing in their first Shield final after long domestic careers. Ferguson, a Test debutant earlier this summer, was waylaid last year by a serious knee injury, while Cooper was dropped due to a lack of runs. Both have been firm contributors to South Australia this season. The final commences on Sunday.

South Australia squad: Travis Head (c), Tom Andrews, Alex Carey (wk), Tom Cooper, John Dalton, Callum Ferguson, Jake Lehmann, Joe Mennie, Kane Richardson, Chadd Sayers, Jake Weatherald, Daniel Worrall, Adam Zampa