There it was tucked away on the inside back page of The Australian sports section: “Pink and orange have firmed as the most likely options as the elusive search for a day-night test cricket ball goes global.”
I felt gratified to hear this.
Reading on, I came across this further gem: “Finding a suitable ball is the main barrier to Cricket Australia staging lucrative night tests in prime TV time.”
Well, call me vindicated and blow me down with a feather!
I’ve been suggesting for years that in order to preserve test cricket, the administrators need to introduce day-night tests to make them more relevant to the lifestyles of modern society.
That it might be lucrative to play them in prime TV time is purely a bonus.
Sometimes the simplest change is the best. You don’t have to radically alter test cricket’s rules to make it more attractive. Just sow it seamlessly into people’s lifestyles will be a very good start.
As the much maligned (when he writes on The Roar) Cricket Australia public affairs manager Peter Young said, “Globally, most premium sport is played at night.”
Gee Peter, go to the top of the class!
It further appears that following extensive tests that orange has won out over pink as perhaps the preferred colour for night cricket. I believe orange might be the right colour.
It seems ironic that night time internationals were successful via the World Series Cricket (WSC) supertests way, way back in the 1978/79 season. From memory, they played with a white ball (or was it yellow?) at night, but either way, it obviously became discoloured quickly as it was pelted about the place.
Cricket Australia and Channel 9 have been conducting the tests of the coloured balls away from the public arena, but are now willing to hand their findings over to the ICC, since this is a global issue.
So, we don’t need this radical departure of Twenty20 pink and lime green teams playing out of cities with odd names like Sixers and so, when a simple change like introducing day-night tests into prime TV time will do the trick.
Oh Vinay, where are you? You would love this!
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