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New Zealand coach believes day-night Test cricket will become normal

24th November, 2015
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New Zealand coach Mike Hesson believes day-night Test cricket could become the “norm in four or five years”.

Friday’s pink-ball Test between Australia and the Black Caps in Adelaide is projected to attract the biggest crowd of the summer so far, and Hesson believes it could continue to be a success with the fans into the future.

“We’re excited to play in front of a decent crowd here in Adelaide,” he told Sky Sports Radio.

“The first of a day-night Test which could well turn into the norm in four or five years.”

New Zealand’s only preparation for the match before arriving in Australia came in the form of a two-day trial in Hamilton this year, however they have since performed well in day-night tour matches in both Canberra and Perth.

“I think it’s excitement now. I think before we had a few practice games with the pink ball it was definitely trepidation and a heck of a lot of unknowns.

“It’s something that we’ve known about for a long time, but certainly over the past few days the guys have got really excited by.”

The Test match coincides with further discussion surrounding changes to Test cricket.

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Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland is a known supporter of Mark Taylor’s suggestion to shorten matches to four days, while former Australian captain Ricky Ponting won support earlier this year when he suggested the toss should be automatically won by the visiting team.

Visiting teams have won just 17 of the past 60 Test series since the beginning of 2012, while New Zealand have won just one of their past seven tosses.

“It’s a cracking idea,” Hesson said. “Our record with the toss around the world is dreadful, we’d love at least a 50-50 option, it would be good.”

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