Victoria 3 for 68 trail New South Wales 233 (Hughes 70, Kerr 62*) by 165 runs
Chris Tremain marked his return to New South Wales colours in dramatic style against his former state after Hayden Kerr had posted a half-century on first-class debut as the home side fought back on the delayed opening day at the SCG.
The match was postponed by 24 hours after Will Sutherland, the Victoria allrounder, tested positive for Covid-19 but the game was given the green light on Saturday morning when the remaining Victoria tests came back negative with players only classed as casual contacts.
After Kerr's unbeaten 62 had hauled New South Wales over 200, Tremain struck twice in his opening over having not played for the Blues at all last season following his switch back from Victoria.
With his first delivery he found James Seymour's inside edge into the stumps and two balls later trapped Peter Handscomb lbw. In his second over he drew an edge from Matt Short that was neatly held at second slip to leave Victoria 3 for 2 before Travis Dean and Jonathan Merlo did well to reach stumps on a dank, grey day with the floodlights taking full effect.
In a frenetic opening session New South Wales scored at more than four an over but lost three wickets after being put into bat. In a curious look for the first session of a game in seamer-friendly conditions, two batters were stumped with Kurtis Patterson and Moises Henriques both falling to Matt Short's offspin. Sam Harper's glovework down the leg side to claim Henriques, playing his first game of the season, was especially sharp.
Victoria took charge during the afternoon as the New South Wales middle order crumbled. Debutant Xavier Crone struck twice in consecutive deliveries, the second scalp a pearler of a delivery to take Jack Edwards' off stump. James Pattinson then produced his own gem, a rapid inswinger, to burst through Peter Nevill in his 100th Sheffield Shield match.
Daniel Hughes followed his backs-to-wall innings at the MCG with another good display but became part of the collapse after 154 balls when he was Brody Crouch's maiden first-class wicket.
