Proteas must see 'big picture': Sutherland

Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland is optimistic South African players will come to see the "big picture" and agree to play a pink-ball Test in Adelaide later this year.

Cricket Australia has given the traditional summer schedule an almighty shake-up, releasing a new-look calendar for 2016-17 on Wednesday.

For the first time since 2003, the first Test of the season will take place in Perth instead of Brisbane, while the Gabba will host its debut day-night Test in a series opener against Pakistan on December 15.

But whether there will be a repeat of the wildly successful day-night fixture at Adelaide Oval remains to be seen, with South African players reluctant to commit due to concerns over the pink ball.

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South African captain AB de Villiers claimed on Wednesday his side had met with Steve Smith and the Australian team earlier this year to discuss pink-ball cricket and concluded there are "too many unknowns" surrounding the concept to go ahead.

Sutherland, however, is hopeful Cricket Australia can use the next seven months to change their minds.

"I remain optimistic because I really believe that the big picture is too hard to argue with," he told reporters in Brisbane.

"There are literally tens of thousands of people that want to see this match played day-night and I don't think a handful of players who are objecting to that should necessarily be holding it back.

"It's an interesting contrast, isn't it - Pakistan Cricket Board and Pakistan players enthusiastically took up the invitation to play that Test match.

"Perhaps they should talk to Scott Henry, who's here and made a couple of hundreds for Queensland (in the Sheffield Shield) with a pink ball under lights.

"I don't think he's had too much trouble seeing it."

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However, Sutherland – who will hold discussions with Cricket South Africa in Dubai later this month - said he hoped the issue would be resolved in the near future.

"I think within the foreseeable future we’ll be able to lock it down, make a decision and get on with life,” Sutherland told 5AAA radio.

"I don’t think anyone involved with that game could genuinely say that Adelaide Test match wasn’t a success… day-night Test cricket is here to stay."

Brisbane has struggled for crowds and general interest for non-Ashes Test matches for many years, but traditionalists will loathe the Gabba losing its status as the summer's first venue.

Australia has not been beaten in a Test match at the Gabba for the past 28 years.

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But Sutherland said the desire for a greater buzz surrounding the Gabba Test outweighed any advantage the Australian side gleaned from starting each summer there.

"There's some great examples of iconic Test matches that are held around the country as major, annual events and we see that in some ways, for whatever reason, the Brisbane Test match hasn't quite made it into that category yet," he said.

Hobart has also retained its status as a Test venue, with a one day international series against New Zealand scheduled to break up the Test summer before Pakistan's visit.

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