Victoria 282 for 9 (Kellaway 64, Harper 63, Harris 56, O’Neill 52, Gannon 5-60, Ryan 3-56) vs Queensland
Victoria were 282 for 9 when bad light forced an early stumps shortly before the scheduled close of play after Queensland won the toss and decided to bowl.
Harper, who had recently returned from South Africa where he acted as reserve wicketkeeper, made a flying start in his return to the Shield arena, scoring 63 from 89 balls in an opening partnership of 102 with Harris, who made a more sedate 56 from 122 balls.
Captain Will Sutherland, batting low at No. 8, was unbeaten on 22 from just 24 balls and will be looking for support from No.1 1 Matt Hennig.
After coming off a first class century for Australia A against India A on a recent tour of India, Harper played with freedom belying the swing and seam conditions on offer.
Promoted to open the batting last season in an effort to counter spicy Shield pitches with his aggressive nature, the wicketkeeper-batsman was the second leading run-scorer in the Sheffield Shield by the end of the summer.
He made 677 runs at an average of almost 36 and had a phenomenal strike rate of 83. All top 10 run scorers in Shield cricket last season averaged below 40.
