Winning both the One-Day Cup and the Sheffield Shield in the same season is a rare achievement, accomplished only eleven times since the tournaments began running concurrently. South Australia had never achieved this elusive "domestic double" until the 2024/25 season, when they spectacularly ended two long-standing title droughts: a 13-year wait for the One-Day Cup and a 29-year wait for the Sheffield Shield.
With this triumph, South Australia joins Western Australia, New South Wales, and Victoria as the only teams to secure both domestic titles in a single season. New South Wales last completed the double in 2002/03 and has done so four times in total. Victoria’s most recent double came in 2018/19, only their second since the 1979/80 season.
Western Australia, meanwhile, has the record for achieving and repeating the double, having done so in 1976/77 and 1977/78, and again in three consecutive seasons from 2021 to 2023. South Australia broke that recent WA dynasty this year with a memorable campaign, overcoming Victoria in the One-Day Cup final and defeating Queensland to clinch the Sheffield Shield.
Their One-Day Cup victory was significant, as it marked the inaugural awarding of the newly named Dean Jones Trophy - a tribute to the late Australian great. It also ended a 13-year title drought in the format for South Australia. Just 28 days later, they capped their season with Sheffield Shield glory, lifting the Shield for the first time since 1995/96. Interestingly, both past championship wins ended in a draw, with South Australia crowned champions by virtue of superior performance across the season, finishing top of the standings.
Key individual performances were instrumental in South Australia’s success. Mackenzie Harvey scored the most runs in the One-Day Cup season, amassing 334 runs at an average of 55.66, including a top score of 134. His performance mirrored that of Michael Klinger who topped the runs during their last One-Day Cup winning season with 498 runs (average 55.33, high score 112).
Similarly, in the Sheffield Shield, Jason Gillespie ended the last title-winning season with the highest wicket tally, claiming 46 dismissals. Nearly three decades later, Nathan McAndrew followed in his footsteps, leading the 2024/25 Shield season with 40 wickets and recording the best bowling figures of the campaign (7/11).
The legacy of the Lehmann family was also a major narrative. In the 1995/96 Shield-winning campaign, Darren Lehmann was South Australia’s second-highest run-scorer with 1,099 runs. Nearly three decades later, his son Jake played a key role in this season’s triumph, scoring 750 runs to rank third overall. Four South Australians - Jake Lehmann, Alex Carey, Jason Sangha, and Henry Hunt - finished among the top ten run-scorers for the Shield season.
South Australia’s 2024/25 campaign will be remembered as one of the most successful in the state's cricket history, etching their name alongside the domestic cricket double championship-winning teams of the past.