Day-night Test plans on track

The plan to stage the world’s first day-night Test match between Australia and New Zealand next year remains on track following the trial conducted with pink balls during a recent round of the Bupa Sheffield Shield.

While the trial – concurrently carried out in Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide – raised some concerns with the durability and performance of the pink ball, Cricket Australia chief executive officer James Sutherland has indicated the ambition to host the historic twilight Test remains in place.

That match is loosely scheduled for November 2015 as part of a three-Test series against the Black Caps (the other two Tests will be staged in traditional daylight hours), and is expected to be held in either Brisbane, Adelaide or Hobart.

The major stumbling block to playing Test cricket under lights has been the red ball, which ‘flares’ (appears with a comet-like tail) under artificial lighting thereby making it difficult for batsmen, fielders and television viewers.

The introduction of pink balls has eliminated ‘flaring’ as a problem, but the recent Shield trial exposed other issues such as the external deterioration and softness of the ball before the 80 overs currently mandated for a new ball to be introduced had been reached.

The wear and tear on the pink ball was also far more pronounced on the more abrasive playing surfaces at the MCG and Adelaide Oval, whereas balls used at the ‘Gabba retained their sheen for far longer.

“We’re in the process of evaluating the feedback we’ve had from all different stakeholder groups, and I’ve got to say that, on balance, the feedback has been very positive,” Sutherland told cricket.com.au.

“As we always knew, we would learn a little bit more about the ball and how it responds in various conditions – not just from day to night but also how the pink ball responded in varying conditions - pitches that had more grass on them, pitches that had less grass on them and so on.

“All of those things were a really good learning experience that we need to put together and take back to ball manufacturers.

“But I don’t see any reason from here why we wouldn’t be continuing to go onwards and upwards with our trials with a view to playing some Test cricket at night.”

While publicly the response to the pink ball trial was largely positive and spectators in particular rated the innovation favourably, some players and team officials have been privately critical of the extent to which the external condition of the ball deteriorates.

Many were supportive of the concept and claimed visibility of the pink ball under lights was very good, but bemoaned the fact that it stopped swinging after “six to eight overs” and showed no propensity to ‘reverse swing’ once the initial lacquer coat was removed.

There were also reports the pink ball was more likely than its red counterpart to lose its shape as well as its hardness (which meant it was also harder to score from), and that the white seam was difficult to pick up as the ball got dirty.

Some have called for the use of dark-coloured stitching for the seam as is used on white balls in limited-overs cricket, while others suggested the trial should have been conducted at Toyota Futures League (second XI) level rather than at a vital stage of the Sheffield Shield season.

But as Sutherland explained, if the concept is to be introduced for Test cricket it needs to be trialled at the highest-possible level beforehand and the concerns about the composition and performance of the ball will be the subject of ongoing discussions with manufacturers.

 “We clearly need to continue to improve the ball and to make sure it behaves as closely as possible to the red ball,” he said.

 “But I have always said that somewhere along the way – in order to get to that outcome – it may be necessary to reach some sort of compromise on the ball.

 “Perhaps what ball is used, how it’s used and maybe for how long it’s used in an innings – whether 80 overs is the right time for a ball to last, or whatever?

 “They are all things we’ll take into account as we gather the feedback and other data from the trials.”

 At the end of the round of day-night Shield matches, assessment was sought from players, umpires, coaches, curators, match referees and spectators with more than 450 opinions canvassed on the merits or otherwise of the pink ball trial.

That was complemented by a detailed examination of the balls at various stages of innings across the three games, as well as statistical data that compared the pink balls’ performance against the results achieved with the traditional red Kookaburra turf ball used in Australia.

Using a range of criteria, such as the average number of centuries scored per innings and the proportion of wickets that fell to spin and seam bowling respectively, there appeared no startling aberrations from the use of the pink ball under twilight conditions.

Negative responses from spectators largely centred on the traditional preference for Test and first-class cricket to be played during daylight hours – “why try to fix something that ain’t broke?” one fan noted.

But Sutherland pointed out that the move towards staging day-night Test matches was not to replace the current traditional Test match structure, but rather to provide greater opportunities for spectators and television viewers when Tests were played outside of peak holiday period.

“I don’t think anyone is any doubt about the commercial appeal of day-night Test cricket, and that fan and spectator access would be clearly improved,” Sutherland said.

“And we shouldn’t discuss the playing day-night Test cricket without reminding people we’re not talking about playing the Boxing Day Test at night.

“It’s about at certain times of the year – particularly at times of year when typically adults are at work and kids are at school.

“The summer holiday period in Australia lends itself to Test cricket, but at other times of the year it can be very difficult to engage with and attend or watch Test cricket, be it here or in other parts of the world.

“And that’s really at the heart of the issue, and the challenge is to try to provide more opportunities for people to engage with Test cricket in their spare time.”