ENG vs PAK: Joe Root's suggestions to counter bad light – Start early, use brighter ball

The second Test between England and Pakistan at the Rose Bowl in Southampton was plagued by rain and bad light on all five days. Only 134.3 overs were possible in the entire Test match, which was the shortest in terms of balls bowled in England in nearly 33 years. Pakistan were bowled out for 236 while England managed 110/4 as the Test match ended in a damp, tame draw. England lead the three-match Test series 1-0 having won a tense match at Old Trafford by three wickets. The final match will also be played in Southampton on Friday and England will be gunning for their first series win against Pakistan since 2010.

Speaking in the post-match press conference, England skipper Joe Root admitted that the issue of bad light must be looked at seriously by the officials if they have to improve the standard and quality of Test matches. Root had two suggestions in order to counter bad light. One was an early start and the other the use of a bright ball.

“Maybe we should start half-an-hour early if we have lost time. You don’t necessarily need to start every game at 10:30 AM, but maybe if you need to make up time then that is something that we need to look at so that bad light is not an issue. It is a possibility,” Root said.  

Play with Bright ball

With bad light wreaking havoc on all five days, there were suggestions by some experts that Test matches that are affected in this situation should be played with the Pink Ball. Root had another suggestion and he also called upon authorities to improve the standard of floodlights.

“Maybe we could use a lighter red ball instead of the Dukes ball. Maybe, there has got to be a minimum standard of floodlights we should play on. There is an MoU that has been put in place for this series but I do not know how flexible it can be,” Root said.

In the end, Root said it is hard to blame the umpires as they too have to work under a guideline. “I don’t think I have seen a game affected by bad light this much. The ground staff have tried to dry the ground. I think there is something bigger which needs to be looked up higher. This needs to be addressed somewhere, somehow,” Root said.