7 talking points about the day-night Test match

After 128 years, the five-day Test match is being played under lights on November 27 at the Adelaide Oval. And for the first time the pink ball will be used for this game. The match is being played between Australia and New Zealand. Australia is captained by Steve Smith while Brendon McCullum leads New Zealand for the historical day-night test. Richard Illingworth, Nigel Llong (both from England) are the on-field umpires and S Ravi (India) is the third umpire. Sri Lanka's Roshan Mahanama is the match referee. 

The initiative has been praised by players from other nations, including India captain Virat Kohli who have welcomed the Adelaide match as a potential watershed moment for the game.

The hook is a day-night Test cricket. The missile is pink. The players and pundits are sceptical.

Why the pink ball?

The pink ball is playing an exclusive role in the day-night test match. It's a cross between the red ball used for traditional day-only Tests and the white one used for limited-overs matches.The white ball in the day-night test is hard to see against the white clothes worn by players and umpires. The intent is that batsmen be able to see the pink ball through daylight, dusk and under floodlights, while all other playing conditions remain unaltered.

Making of Pink Ball

It is made in the same method as the red ball. The red and the pink leather balls are dyed, whereas the white turf ball is not. The coloured balls need to be painted and then coated with lacquer to preserve the colour.

Here is a video of how it is made:

What players think of the pink ball

There have been mixed reactions from players. Some of them believe full-pitched deliveries would be harder to pick up. While some batsmen have lamented the inability to judge spin by focusing on the position of the seam moves when the ball comes down to them as they could do with the red ball. On the other hand, bowlers say that the ball gets old quickly. It swings early but quickly loses its shine and then goes dead straight. The red ball helps to buff up one side of the ball to encourage reverse swing with the old ball, but the pink ball doesn't provide the same effectiveness. But there is some good expectation from players like Brendon McCullum who thinks it's going to be outstanding to take the game moving forward. “We are creating history playing in the first day-night Test so I’m sure a lot of people are going to be watching around the world,” McCullum said. Australia captain Steve Smith said, “And that’s really exciting for world cricket," reported Hindustan Times.

Audience reaction

Spectators have complained it is difficult to see the pink ball as clearly as they can see the red ball when it is used. Given the paucity of people who attend Sheffield Shield matches, there has not been a groundswell of opposition. This match would increase the flow of more lucrative broadcasts deals for cricket boards. This match also will give good attendance even on weekdays outside school holidays at the field.

Welcoming the day-night Test

The cricket world welcomes the first ever day-nigh test match, between Australia and New Zealand, at the Adelaide Oval. With the lack of crowds in stadiums for Tests, cricket administrators and players felt day-night matches are the way forward to attract fans back to the grounds. Australian media tycoon Kerry Packer in the late 1970s established world series cricket. He played an important role in revolutionising the game when it threatened to go stale by using the one-day format, a white ball and coloured uniforms. This used playing under lights for the first time. However, the concept of playing under lights has taken almost four decades to catch on for the longest form of the game.

How successful will it be?

There is a ray of hope that this could make test cricket popular again.